


Wild

by limey_limey



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Catra is not a magicat, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:13:56
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 46,897
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25734877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/limey_limey/pseuds/limey_limey
Summary: Born in the woods at the base of the Crystal Castle, the cub has no idea that she is anything other than a hunter; a wild thing that roams the Whispering Woods, until she meets a little blond Horde cadet and everything changes.
Relationships: Adora/Catra (She-Ra)
Comments: 205
Kudos: 474





	1. Cub

A rough tongue tickled at tiny ears, pushing them back into a brown mane as she was cleaned by her mother. She purred and giggled as her father prowled the mouth of their cave; watching, always watching for anything that could harm his cub. It didn’t matter to him that his cub was still small after so many turns of the seasons, or that she would walk on her hind legs as often as on all four. She was their offspring and he would protect her.

As strange as the cub was, she was an excellent little hunter and could catch even the swiftest of small prey. She could navigate the trees more like the ape creatures than the cats, leaping from branch to branch, at times losing her parents as they sought to hunt her out. Honing her skills to hunt, and to hide. Her parents were proud. The rest of the pride had cast them out when they had seen the cub, thinking she would damage the bloodline. 

They had left and made their lair where their cub had been born, at the base of the monstrous blue mountain that rose out of the woods and shone ghostly in the night. It was covered in lines and groves that the cub would use as handholds and scale the otherwise smooth surface to the top. It was a good training ground. It would make her strong. The mountain would hum, day and night, a low frequency that only animals like them could perceive; the lullaby that the cub lived and slept to. 

Padding back into the cave, he curled around his offspring and his mate, sheltering them with his powerful body. He rested his head on a large paw and relaxed to sleep. His daughter squealed in delight, tumbling away from her mother to pounce onto her father’s broad head and chew at his ears. He chuffed indulgently at her, flicking his ears. After long minutes, he tired of the game, swiping a long tongue across her face and nudging her back into the warm nest of their bodies. She curled into a purring ball and easily gave into slumber. He nuzzled his head with his mate and settled down to sleep.

The cub woke first at dawn. The shy tendrils of hazy light sifting through the mouth of the cave and mixing with the feint blue glow of the mountain wall that made up one side of their cave. Her mismatched eyes took in the sleeping faces of her parents an her heart made her purr with contentment. Usually her father woke first and hunted, bringing them breakfast before the trio would stalk the woods hunting and being together. This morning the cub would hunt. She would bring back the small tasty things that climbed the trees. Using all her not inconsiderable stealth she leap out from her parents, careful not to disturb them and scurried for the entrance.

Once outside she sped to the tree-line and scampered up the nearest tree on tiny silent paws. The Whispering Woods came to life around her.

+++++++

Dashing back through the foliage, barely a leaf moving in her wake, she swung back into the clearing. Limbs gone gangly from growth she stumbled a little as she came to a stop close to the mouth of the cave. Darkness surrounded here, night having beaten her back to her home. Releasing her kill from her mouth into her clawed hand she, she clasped it tightly and walked into the hazy blue glow that came from the cave. The cave was warm and the blue glow was dull enough to allow sleep but also to feel like company. 

She stretched languorously and collapsed in a boneless heap at the back of the cave, still small enough to tuck into a small pocket between the wall of stone and the gently humming mountainside. The warmth of the building and the gentle sound soothed her and made her feel less alone. She wiggled to get comfortable, realising that soon her expanding body would not fit here, and felt a weight press on her. Bringing the plump tree creature to her mouth she tore through its fur and flesh, feeling the still warm blood fill her mouth, before taking a generous bite. As she ate she purred to herself, bringing further comfort, missing the feel of her parents around her. She had been alone for a full turn of the seasons now but still had not grown accustomed to being alone.

Finally exhausted, hunger sated and claws and paws licked clean, she curled her tail around her body and made herself a small ball. She would sleep with one eye slitted open and ears alert to the smallest sound, just as her father had taught her. She was small, but she was still alive and if she wanted to stay that way she had to be the best hunter.

+++++++

Speeding across the way on the back of a skiff was the most exciting thing that had happened to the four young cadets in ever. Three of the children, Lonnie, Rogelio and Kyle, sat huddled behind the pilot, sheltered from the rushing wind by the bulk of the vehicle. The fourth child, a blond girl with a gap toothed grin, stood fearlessly at the front of the skiff, delighted by the speed and the wind that whipped her ponytail away from her face. Adora was going to see the Whispering Woods for the first time.

The Horde feared and coveted the Whispering Woods in equal measure. No matter how many times they had tried to break their way through it to attack the kingdoms that lay beyond, the woods would hold them back. Or would writhe and change almost before their eyes, throwing obstacles in their paths. Many had lost their lives careening into trees that had not been there a moment before or pounded to dust beneath the jaws of the large beasts that hid in the trees. And yet. The allure of the land, the territory, was worth the loss of life for the greater glory of The Horde.

That meant that once a rotation a group of junior cadets would find themselves flown to the edge of the woods and set down to camp as close to the woods as possible. They would set up tents and spend three days happy the very outskirts of the place, looking for possible pathways. As children they were more agile and could fit in crooks and crannies that adults could not see, and if one of them failed to return it was an acceptable loss of a soldier as yet untrained. Mostly they did come back - less afraid and full of excitement about their next trip and how they would be the ones to conquer the dreaded Whispering woods!

This was to Adora’s teams first expedition to the woods - their first time outside of the Fright Zone. Adora felt exhilaration in every fibre of her eight year old self. Turning from the wind she flashed a huge grin at her friends, and got a weak, queasy smile in return from Kyle and a thumbs up for Lonnie. Rogelio, arm around Kyle to keep him secure, was staring out at the horizon much like the blond. Turning back, blue eyes zeroed in on the trees that were rapidly getting closer and closer. Shades of green, yellow and blue everywhere. She couldn’t hear much over the sounds of the skiff’s engines, but she was sure that as well as the riot of colour that there would be a cacophony of sound.

Shadow Weaver had told her to take in everything she could, to remember to make maps and keep her squad under control. She had to remember that this was just one more step on her path to greatness in The Horde and that she must always remember that everything was for the greater glory. Shadow Weaver would be so proud of her if she could go back and tell her that she had found a path. She WOULD find a path!

Soon the skiff came to a halt on a strip of short grass that surrounded the edge of the woods. The children spilled out followed by their trainer. His voice barked out ordered as he instructed the children to take the tents and set them up in a rough semi-circle and set up a fire pit. With the practiced ease of a team that had been together for as long as they could remember the 4 children had the tents prepared and the fire pit arranged. Adora volunteered, eagerly, to fetch wood from the perimeter of the wood. With a column nod the trainer agreed - emphasising that at no point should she attempt to enter the tree-line. With a swift salute she dashed away.

Even the edge of the woods felt creepy, charged with a strange kind of menace, something that Adora couldn’t quite put her finger on but that danced up her spine like spiders. Grabbing every loose twig and branch she could carry, she could barely see over the pile in her arms as she turned to head back to the landing site. Taking more tentative steps now that her vision was somewhat obscured, she felt a pricking sensation on the back of her neck. All the hairs standing up below her swaying ponytail. She continued to move, trying to move faster while still looking calm but she was certain of one thing - something was stalking her from the trees.

+++++++  
Mismatched eyes looked down at the golden head below her. The cat-girl had seen these creatures come and go, day-in day-out. Sometimes she would watch them from the trees when she had found a kill close to the edge of the forest, devouring the flesh as she took in the strange coverings of their bodies or the odd sounds that they made to each other. Some of them looked like the cub below her, hairless save for their head, while others looked like lizards or sometimes a scorpion. Nobody ever looked like her. The thought always made her ears lay flat and her tail thrash as thoughts of her parents, large feline bodies so different from her own filled her mind. Their images had faded in the seasons since their passing but she still knew them. 

Today’s group was small; one larger creature - blocky and blue - noisily directing the smaller ones. This set of cubs were the youngest she had seen, probably no bigger than herself. The lizard was larger. She licked her lips, it would probably taste good; the small ones she managed to catch in the trees were some of the most delicious in the woods. Though the thought of hunting one of them had crossed her mind, she knew when she was outnumbered. Then one of them walked away, so she followed.

Leaping from tree-to-tree, landing silently among the leaves, she followed the golden haired one walking the edge. Watched as it crouched and collected fallen wood, piling it so high on their chest that there was no way that they would be able to safely see. This could be entertaining. She continued to slink through the underbrush, eyes fixed on the child. She found that she liked the way that the fading light glinted off of her hair. Was almost transfixed by it. She noticed when the creature shifted nervously and started to furtively glance to the side. Not wanting to be spotted she tore her eyes away and disappeared back into the safety of her home.


	2. Camp

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Some carnivorous devouring of small animals here.

The fire had been tamped down to nothing more than grey ashes and the junior cadets packed away into their tents. The instructor had given each strict instructions that they were to remain in their tent and only leave when it was their time to go on watch at the perimeter. They would be in pairs - one taking either side of the campsite. The large instructor would take the first watch while Kyle and Lonnie were to take the second while dusk still painted the surroundings with some fading light, while Adora and Rogelio would follow them 4 hours later in the dead of night. 

Snug in her sleeping bag, Adora pulled it up to her chin and and curled onto her side facing Lonnie. Grey eyes focused on her tent-mate who was still tossing and turning in a vain effort to get comfortable on the thin foam pad unfurled beneath her. Finally with a loud huff the dark haired girl flopped onto her back and turned her head to look at Adora.

“What?” The impatient words were spat out.

“Do you think there are things in the woods this close to the edge?” She couldn’t shake that feeling of being watched from earlier. But she wasn’t afraid. She wasn’t!

“Nah, no enough food out here for ‘em. Those big things are supposed to need loads of food.” Adora hummed like she agreed, yet she had definitely had a shadow. “Now go to sleep.” She reached out and slapped off the light laying between them, throwing them into darkness.

Adora tried to sleep, she laid still counting her breaths as Lonnie fell into a deep sleep, puffing out not-quite snores. Minutes ticked by slowly but the more she tried to drift off more awake she felt. Her skin seemed to prickle with anticipation, but of what she didn’t know. She could hear the rustle of the tents as the wind blew through the clearing, the jingling of the equipment that was set out. Even Rogelio’s familiar hisses drifted to her ears and every one of them seemed to set her nerves more and more on edge. By the time that Lonnie groaned and got up for her shift with Kyle, Adora was ready to crawl out of her skin.

Knowing that sleep was a lost cause she crawled out of her sleeping back and bundled herself into her winter-uniform coat, stuffing a flashlight in her pocket. It was chilly on the outskirts of the woods at this time of year, and as Adora left the tent she could still make out her breath clouding in the air. Like all children she couldn’t help but take a long breath out into the night and imagine that she was a dragon! She knew that Shadow Weaver wouldn’t approve of such childishness but she knew it wasn’t hurting anyone. She looked up and made eye contact with a shivering Kyle who looked miserable at the edge of the campsite, and started to walk along the edge of the tree-line.

Fumbling the light out of her pocket, she clicked it on and made her way towards a cluster of large bodied trees. Reaching out a small hand she ran it over the bark, noting how even though it was imperfect and full of flaws and crevices it felt warm and alive, very different from the cold, still walls of the corridors of the Fright Zone. Her light illuminated crazy shadows over the trees as she moved it around lazily.

Movement further into the trees caught her eye and made her freeze; had she really seen that? Should she follow it? She bit her lip as she tried to decide what she should do, really she shouldn’t be out here at all but if she went to look now she could be back for her watch and she might have intelligence she could share. She could even be the first Horde soldier to find a path through the woods! 

Walking slowly she inched her way through the narrow crevice between two trees. She could feel the brush of the wood on her back and chest as she manoeuvred herself sideways to fit further. A spike of panic worked up her spine as she, for the first time, considered that she could get stuck here. And what if when she got through she encountered something dangerous and needed to get out again quickly? She refused to let those thoughts intrude on her plan to make Shadow Weaver proud of her. No adult could get in here but she was small and strong, she could help the Horde move forward.

Still edging through the smaller and smaller gap, she was shocked when she suddenly popped out into a clearing like a cork. The onion was so abrupt that she stumbled and lost her footing, landing hard on the group and knocking the air from her lungs. Dazed, she lay blinking owlishly up at the dark canopy above her, somewhere to her side her torch had rolled away and weakly illuminated the small clearing. 

So focused was she on trying to catch her breath that she failed to notice the figure in the darkness until it was suddenly on her.

Pinning her down.

Crouched above her with teeth bared and glowing whitely in the weak torchlight.

+++++

Tail whipping in agitation, she sat up one of the larger trees that lined the cleaning. Usually the cub would not hunt this area of the woods at night, sticking closer to home where she could easily drag a larger kill and devour it, sad from scavengers and other, more dangerous foes. Yet, when she had woken from her nap, ready for her night hunt to begin, she had found herself back here, almost without her permission, like her body knew something that she did not.

Pickings had been slim on her journey to the camp ground, she had manage to snatch a couple of small but plump birds from the air as she flew past from tree to tree and had rendered them to pieces as she had watched the small camp break for the night. She had never seen the strange ones at night and they way they put out the hot light and moved into the soft caves was fascinating. She cocked her head as she watched, blood and vicar escaping onto her chin as she quietly ate. 

Then there was stillness, all the small ones had disappeared from sight and the large blue bodied threat methodically walked the edges of the encampment, clearly alert for any danger. Growing restless she bounded away to hunt for more, her stomach growing faintly. Nearby there was a small clearing and further still a spring. There was bound to be something to fill her belly at the water.

Moving from tree to tree, leaves barely moving in her wake, she was soon at the stream. She dropped from the trees into the long grass by the water, sinking down onto her belly to wait for prey. Her brown, striped fur blending into the ever darkening night, only her eyes occasionally catching the light giving away her position. 

It didn’t take long before a large rodent like creature, almost half her size, lumbered to the waters edge on the opposite bank of the stream. As it lowered its head to drink the cub looked around for any other creature, but this one seemed to be alone. Taking the opportunity of its lowered head, she pounced cleanly over the slowly moving water and using her strange long paws, gripped its head and efficiently tore out its throat before it could even let out a sound. Sitting back on her haunches, the young feline scanned for anything that could have heard her kill. When silence remained, she used her claws to slice large chunks of the creatures tender belly and stuff them into her bloody mouth, chewing rapidly and gulping down chunks. 

She gorged until a sliver of light and the muffled sounds of movement caught her eye. Breaking away from the kill she made her way cautiously to the neighbouring clearing and saw that there was unnatural light sifting between the small gaps between the trees. There was definitely something moving along the outside of the tree-line. Curiosity won out of caution, and rather than getting back up into the trees, the cub retreated into the darkness at the edge of the small glade and waited.

It wasn’t long before the sounds of lights grunts and the scraping of something against the bark of the trees filled the clearing, the usual noise of the nocturnal birds and insects that always filled the air going still at the entrance of this intruder. 

Licking her chops, still covered in blood, her eyes remained fixed on the larger crevice the thing would come threw. And then there it was, disgorged from the trees like they had birthed it. With an inelegance unknown to the creatures of the woods, the thing flew through the air and hit the ground hard with an ‘oof’. The odd light with it casting strange shadows around from where it rolled away from their hand. Then it just laid there. 

It was the golden creature from before!

Driven by an urge she could not ignore, her body tensed and she pounced on the reclined figure. Even knowing that this prey was too big for her, she felt the compulsion to pin it to the ground, to show it her strength and power. Her claws grasped at shoulders and body perched over hips as she brought her face down over the creatures and growled.


	3. Patrol

Letting out a small, surprised scream Adora let her four years of cadet training take over and punched the thing snarling in her face in the jaw. The blow connected solidly and the thing went silent, clearly stunned and reeled backwards into the shadows. Adora scrambled to her feet and took up a fighting stance, trying to look as intimidating as a little girl covered in leaves and sticks could. 

Not letting the beast out of her sight she edged towards her dropped flashlight, but was too scared to bend and pick it up. The creature may be hiding in the shadows now, but she could still see its dark silhouette and the creepy reflection of light off of its eyes making them seem light red orbs floating. The child felt a shiver run up her spine as she tried to think of what to do. She couldn’t leave how she had come, she would be trapped an at the things mercy, and she would get lost if she ran and it was bound to know the place.

She felt tears stinging at the back of her eyes, thinking about the sharp teeth and the blood that had covered the face that had loomed over her. There had been claws, she’s sure, digging into her shoulder and that growl. The growl had been chilling, clearly meant to intimidate its prey. She didn’t want to be its prey! 

She wished she could get a better look at it.

Taking the split second decision that having the light was better than not, she snatched it from the ground, all the while keeping her eyes trained on her stony assailant, bringing the torch up and shining it directly at it. The animal let out a hiss, shuddering and withdrawing deeper into the shadows, eyes squeezing shut from the shock of the beam that had lanced into them. In the light, it was not what she had expected. Not at all.

Before it spun and threw itself up into the tree, she took as much note of details as she could, a soldier needs to know their foe. It was gone in a flash, only vague rustling growing further away as it moved fast through the treetops. What she catalogued in her head was confusing, she’d thought it was a wild cat when it was hovering over her. Shed had fangs in her face and claws by her shoulder, she was sure. But standing in the shadows had been a little girl, probably around her own age. She had a tail and huge ears jutting out from her head and was completely naked but covered in fur. But that couldn’t be true.

Nobody lived in the whispering woods.

Realising that staying there longer was just putting her in more danger she quickly wriggled back through the gap in the trees, taking more care this time and dashed back to camp as quietly as possible, not wanting to let anyone know she’d been gone. She crept back into her tent and laid on her bedroll, her mind reeling and adrenaline still pumping through her at her encounter.

She must have fallen asleep as the next thing she knew she felt Lonnie roughly shaking her shoulder, letting her know it was time for her shift on perimeter duty with Rogelio. Stumbling to her feet, Adora realised that she was bone tired. Her back hurt from her stumble to the floor, her body ached from the adrenaline that had drained out of her. 

A huge, jaw cracking yawn was torn out of her as she walked out of her tent flap. She walked towards the large lizard boy who was already standing by the dead embers of the fire pit. His torch was pointed at the ground as she approached and she fished hers back out of her pocket. Rogelio was swaddled in his own cold weather gear, feeling the cool air into his bones. Adora had already decided in her fatigue fogged head that she would go on patrol close to the fissure into the woods; hoping for some reason she couldn’t place that she would catch another glimpse of the forest creature. 

Rogelio grunted his assent when she pointed at herself and in that direction, shambling off the other way. They had been drilled enough in the few weeks leading up to their first ever expedition that she knew that they both knew all the protocols for this.

Adora walked further than Kyle had stationed himself. She did not go as far as the break in the tree-line, even though she wanted to. Years of Shadow Weaver drilling duty into her young head could not be broken just by her own desire to solve a puzzle. No matter how tempting that puzzle might be. She found the decaying remnants of a felled tree jutting out from the others and sat herself there. From this vantage point she could easily watch the camp as well as turn to see the place that she so desperately wished to return. It even provided a very convenient alcove for her back against a neighbouring tree without obscuring her view. If she squinted she could even see the smoke discoursed from the stacks of the Fright Zone, but she drew her eyes away; those she could see any day, the nature here was rarer.

Time passed slowly on watch. They weren’t really expecting anyone to attack them, or even any animals to roam out from the woods protection. They were going through the motions to prepare them for real excursions into enemy territory. They would come here several times a year until they graduated to full soldier status. Adora turned her flashlight to the canopy and looked for any sign of the movement of small nighttime creatures (she was really looking for one large one in particular and she knew it) but nothing stirred.

After less than half an hour the young girl felt her body begin to sag and her eyes grow heavy. She fought it, jerking upright more than once as her head slumped forward onto her chest. She even got to her feet and stomped up and down to keep her blood pumping as much as she could but they felt heavy and she plonked back down soon after. Yawning again, her head tilted back and leaned against a tree and finally sleep dragged her down.

Small snorts and heavy breaths escaped her parted lips as she burrowed into her coat, torch forgotten at her feet. The stillness of the woods began to be broken by the calls of nocturnal birds and the scuttling of small vermin coming out to collect insects and small amphibians and lizards that emerged in the darkest part of the night. She snoozed on, oblivious. If Shadow Weaver ever knew she would be disciplined harshly. Her sleeping mind wasn’t concerned with such things.

Some time later the leaves began to twitch and rustle over head. Like a wave the motion of the leaves rippled and moved ever closer to the sleeping child. They crested to her right and paused. Feint breaths were all that was left moving leaves faintly close to a small, furred face.

Adora slept on, unaware of the eyes that bored into her from above.

Hours passed like this, one little girl snoring peacefully while the other watched over her. Nothing disrupted the peaceful tableaux until the creature perched in the branches noticed motion beginning in the campground. A tent flap opened and the large blue one stepped out, moving in the direction of the lizard. Once the green boy had been sent back to his tent, the larger adult started towards the sleeper.

A large seedpod smacked into Adora’s forehead, sending her springing to her feet in panic, fists up ready to fight and eyes flashing from side to side. Sleep rudely disturbed she was confused and scared for the second time since they had arrived here. Movement in the periphery of her vision caused her to whirl on the intruder, only to realise it was her instructor come to send her back to bed.

Thankfully she marched back. 

Once back in her sleeping back, careful not to disturb Lonnie, she wondered what luck had meant that she had not been found sleeping at her post.


	4. The Not-There

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Catra's POV of last chapter.

The cub flew through the trees away from the thing with the light and the hard punch. She moved from branch to branch, careful to disturb as little as possible. The woods moved around her, as they always did, cupping her and cradling her closely, bringing home faster to her than her legs could carry until she was once again hidden in the glowing comfort of her cave. She sat in her corner, which grew ever more cramped but felt like the embrace she missed from her pack.

A small hand, claws retracted, reached up and massaged her jaw which ached from where the creature had fought back. It wasn’t that the cub had thought it prey, but she had not expected such swift retaliation either. She had had it pinned beneath her, at her mercy, as he father had shown her when she was tiny. But she had been bested. She had retreated in shame and allowed the bean of light to see her before she fled in shame.

She felt a sting in her eyes and knew that the wetness would soon run down her face. She didn’t know what that was, none fo the animals that she hunted or observed from above ever did it. She could not recall ever seeing it happen to her pack. As the tears came she violently shook her head to be rid of them and then groomed her face with a lifted paw. 

The cub dozed for a while in the dull light of the cave, she would wake to feed again soon enough, the. Growling in her belly would not let her do anything else. Yet she woke sooner than nature intended when the light in the cave suddenly intensified, burning through her closed eye-lids and causing her to blink awake, pulling into herself as she faced the intruder in her den.

The not-there was back.

The not-there came to the cave a lot. The cub had seen it arrive many times, emerging from the wall as if it were a part of it only to detach and stand at the centre of the dim room. At first it had appeared rarely, she hazily remembered her parents biting and snapping at it only to come away with mouths full of nothing. It had no smell, no form other than what could be seen. When jaws snapped at it, t would flicker and reform, moved by their attacks. Low growls had filled the room then and no sound had ever left the not-there. 

When here parents had gone it had come with greater frequency until now she saw it with each turn of the day moon. No longer silent, foreign sounds would come from its mouth. As a smaller cub she had be afraid and alone, cowering from the bright light and the alien sounds. Years later she looked forward to the company, some of the sounds having long since started to make sense to her. The cub was even able to make some of those sounds and communicate with the not-there.

The not-there wanted her to.

She crawled forward out of the alcove and went to sit at the feet of the towering presence that dominated the area, its head almost touching the roof of the den. The cub sat cross legged, gazing up at the blankly serene face that emerged from the cowl of its hood. She didn’t know any of those words, the little one only knew that this was something different to all the animals she chased and the creatures she watched make camps and wander from settlements. Her small face was illuminated blue as she looked up in supplication.

After long minutes filled only with light and the swish of the child’s tail brushing the dusty floor, the empty eyes looked down and fixed on her. The blank face made no sign of recognition or affection, the voice that emerged flat and purposeful, but it filled the room and made the cub feel less alone and less ashamed about the events of the night so far.

“What has happened to your face?” 

The feline knew then that her aborted hunt must have left a wound blooming on her face. Silence stretched between them, the not-there would wait until the cub could find the sounds among her roars and growls. It had told her that the new noises were ‘speech’ but that made no sense to her.

“Not cub… out,” she waved to the door of the cave and in the direction of the encampment. “I hunt. It…” she mimed the sock to the jaw.

A brow raised in inquiry, “One of the soldiers hit you?”

The cub was unsure what ‘soldier’ was but the word didn’t seem right for the light coloured one.

“Small,” she pointed at herself.

“A child did this,” there was no longer a question in its words. 

It was still then for long moments, eyes once again looking off. The cub didn’t mind, content to just not be alone for a short while. Maybe that was why she felt so drawn to the ones that cam. Maybe that was why she found herself still fascinated by the one that had hit her. A part of her wanted to go back and find it, to pounce again and growl and purr and sniff. She didn’t know why, no other creature had made her want to know it before; hunt, kill, eat or flee but never know.

Indeterminable minutes later, the not-there’s eyes were back on her.

“Be careful you are not seen. You have a purpose. You were made for something more than dying at the hands of invaders.” The cub knew few of those words but she knew ‘die’ and she knew ‘purpose’, the not-there had been sure of that. She nodded vigorously in response, pleased when she received a nod of praise before that not-there melted back into the wall and the light dimmed once again.

Not desiring to be alone in the cave after that, and belly starting to feel hollow the cub prowled out of the narrow opening of the cave and ran into the night to hunt for food.

_______

Later, hunger satiated she couldn’t help be drawn back to where she had pounced on the ‘child’, the not-there had called it. She wandered the dark clearing, eyes adjusted to see just as well as in the day. She let her senses fill the place, sniffing the ground where she had been, taking in the peculiar scents that it had left behind. In among the smell of mud was something sticky and dark that tickled her nose, but beneath that was something else. Something musky and sweet, it made her nose twitch but not unpleasantly.

Taking back to the safety of the trees as she heard other, more dangerous things stirring beyond the clearing close to the river. Rather than moving back to the safety of her den, the cub found herself drawn to stay close to the edge of the forest. One false move and she would be exposed, but she wouldn’t make a false move. Even though she was young her reflexes and muscles were fine tuned. She could move in even the most precarious of places.

She hadn’t gone far when she took a breath and was hit by the clearing smell, only stronger here and growing more so. She stretched out her senses and realised that she could hear deep, soft breaths coming from close by that accompanied the smells. 

Creeping forward even more cautiously than before, the cub found herself looking down at the slumbering face of the child. Its pink lips were parted and breaths puffed out from where it was bundled in the thing that surrounded it. Its eyes were closed, lashes brushing round cheeks as its head lolled against the tree at its back. The cub was surprised that the ungainly thing hadn’t slipped from the fallen log that it was sat on, its body looked boneless. 

The cub continued to take in the other small creature well past time when she should have returned to her den. Finally, knowing that she would not go back while the child remained, and feeling unaccountably worried that this child, completely oblivious to its surroundings, would become prey for something far more dangerous than her, the cub settled into the crook of the tree. Sitting on silent guard of the creature that had fought back against her.

A long time passed like that; the feline studying while the child slept. Time meant little to the cub as it passed; she was a thing of the night as much as the day and waiting was part and parcel of the life of a hunter.

Ears snapped to the sound of movement in the camp hours later, making them swivel to keep the sound tracked. Breaking her gaze away from her fascination, she saw the big one coming. Fear lanced through her and she could not tell why. The big one and the child were part of the same pack, except she felt reasonably sure that the child would suffer for this.

Keeping hidden, the cub grasped a hard shelled seed and launched it with speed and precision at the forehead of the child. It hit its mark with a thud and the child was on its feet, casting around wildly in confusion.

Satisfied that the cub was safe and knowing that she would not be if she remained, the cub withdrew back into the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So what's Light Hope up to?
> 
> Is it even a story about Catra if an adult isn't manipulating her for their own ends?


	5. Challenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little older and a lot more together.

Adora left her tent, still bleary eyed and half asleep as she rubbed her knuckles into her eyes, yawning and scratching at her stomach. Looking over Adora was pleased to note that Lonnie, who had slept most of the night, looked just as tired as she did. Both girls stumbled out off their tent and dragged their feet to the camp fire which was again blazing, heating up water. One of the few perks of being on manoeuvres was that the rations were different. All of the cadets were excited to devour the dehydrated rations that tasted of more than brown or grey!

The four of them sat fanned out around the boiling pot of water, much more confident and self assured than they had been the first time they camped here. Looking around Adora really took notice of her squad in a way she didn’t under the harsh overhead light of the Fright Zone. Everything, and everyone, looks new and different in the light of day. Lonnie, Rogelio, and Adora herself, were staring to shoot up, limbs gone gangly and disproportionate as puberty took hold of their growing bodies. Kyle remained the runt of the group, always skinny and long limbed but still yet to have any kind of growth spurt, leaving him a head shorter than his female companions. As ever Rogelio filled out his growth looking only a little awkward, although they had all been swatted by his tail enough times recently to know that his body was just as out of control as theirs.

This was their fourteenth field training exercise, this time coming during the autumn. The trees colours were changing and the weather unpredictable. The worst was when their allotted four month cycle hit in the winter, bitterly cold as it was in the tents and on sentry duty, but luckily that’d only happened once so far. Adora liked the autumn though, its capriciousness making her skin tingle with anticipation at what might come. The leaves changing colour and the animals that they did see eager to forage and bolder than usual as they prepared for a winter that could be a harsh master.

Now that the squad were older and more capable, their forays into the wild were more exciting; they would be broken up into teams, or set out alone, to find their way into the edges of the forest and scout and bring back what they could find. On rare occasions such scouting groups would find scraps of tech, almost broken beyond recognition, but be lorded when they returned to the barracks. That was what every group of cadets hoped for; the adulation of their peers and extra rations. As yet Adora’s team had no such luck.

Lonnie, Kyle and Rogelio were always on the lookout for the tarnished pieces of metal when they went out. Every time Kyle saw anything shiny in the brush he would dive for it, his excitement outweighing his common sense (because that’s just who Kyle was) and more often than not cam up with bird bones or, in some cases, small rodents attached to his fingers as he screamed.

Unlike her team mates, Adora concerned herself with getting deeper and deeper into the Whispering Woods. For many the woods were almost impenetrable, shifting and changing from one day to the next, making them almost impassable to most. Adora had made it her mission to get as deep into the woods as possible. Over the last four years she had made progress leaving marks on the trees she passed each time. Sometimes they even stayed.

Shovelling warm porridge into her mouth, and wasn’t eating food that was warm a treat, Adora couldn’t wait to hear the their deployment for the day. She would soon be turning thirteen and they would all be moving from being juniors to full cadets, each training trip and new formation learned brought her a step closer to being the Force Captain that Shadow Weaver claimed she was destined to become. Adora was keen to prove her mentor right in everything that she did. 

Their instructor on this trip was Force Captain Octavia, a caustic squid woman whose eyes could pierce right through you. She was one of the youngest Force Captains in the Horde and made her somebody that every cadet wished to impress. She stood tall, resplendent in her red and white uniform, in stark contrast to the blue greens of the surrounding foliage.

“Cadets, for the next three days you will be on your own in the woods. You will be provided with a pack containing three ration bars, a canteen, bedroll, waterproofs, map and compass.” Her eyes cooly passed over each of the pre-teens, all of whom had now set aside their food and were paying rapt attention to her. “Your goal is to return to this point within three days, if you do not return in that time we will wait an additional two days. This will be considered a failure and your entire squad will re-take this assessment in the next cycle. If you are not back after that point you will be left behind.” Her eyes were cold as was her voice when she delivered the last point.

Kyle let out a little whimper, trembling at the idea of being left behind. Adora felt sorry for him, but he would need to toughen up if he wanted to be a soldier with the rest of them. She made eye contact with each of her team mates and gave them a reassuring look. Rogelio nodded back whileLonnie quietly scoffed at her, although a small smile spread over her face. Kyle gave her a watery smile that quivered at the corners.

“Pack up and be waiting at the skiff in ten.” Octavia turned her back to walk away when a tremulous voice stopped her.

“T…the skiff?” Kyle was almost in tears.

“How else do you think I’ll deliver you to the woods?” Now waiting for a response, Octavia strode off to prepare the transport.

Kyle scuttled away to the tent he shared with Rogelio, shoulders shaking with the sobs that he couldn’t keep inside. Rogelio followed, catching up to his bunkmate and throwing an arm around his shoulders as they disappeared into their tent. Lonnie caught Adora’s eye as the walked, side-by-side to their own tent.

The two girls efficiently stowed their gear in their packs and headed to the skiff in companionable silence. When they approached Octavia she ordered them to open their packs and checked that they had what was allowed, no more, no less. She added a map and compass to each before closing them up. The girls climbed on board and waited for their male counterparts to arrive. 

Finally the four youths were on the skiff and it was rising from the ground, scattering leaves and debris in its wake as it moved to glide over the top of the trees.

____________

Adora was the last to be deposited into the woods. She had watched as first Kyle (and maybe Octavia did have some compassion as he was not deposited very far into the woods) and then Lonnie and Rogelio were dropped. The young blond had made a mental note of where each of her comrades were, even though the woods made it very difficult to keep a beat on them after flying away.

As she looked down she saw the treetops rippling with the downdraft of the skiff’s engines. Here and there she thought she saw branches moving and bouncing before the skiff got to them but Octavia didn’t seem to notice. It wasn’t lost on the girl that she was being taken far further into the woods than her companions. Octavia noticed her worried look.

“Shadow Weaver instructed that you be challenged on the course. She believes in your capabilities and this is your chance to prove yourself.”

Finally the skiff hovered over a dark clearing and it was her turn to shimmy down the rope that was lowered into the unknown.

____________

The skiff was soon out of sight, Adora left alone in the woods. Waiting until she was sure that Octavia was far away and the sound of the engines nothing but a feint, fading hum, she let out a piercing whistle, hoping that the disturbance in the trees was what she thought it was. Minutes trickled by as she waited where she had been deposited. Before she could give up hope a blur of movement to her right sent her head whipping to the side, body automatically poised to fight as she laid eyes on the intruder.

“Hey, Adora,” the low voice drawled in the stillness of the morning.

Adora’s body relaxed at the sound, the words still not quite as clear as her own but much improved every time she saw the other girl. Her body relaxed almost against her will and a smile split across her face, stretching her cheek muscles as she rushed over to the young feline and wrapped her furry body in an embrace. “Hey, Catra,” she breathed in her ear.

Catra’s body tensed as the arms wound around her, pinning her own to her sides. She had to fight against her natural fight response at being pinned. The words softly whispered into her ear, breath tickling the skin and making them twitch, caused her body to relax into the hug. The young feline looked forward to these brief snatches of time with the blond girl, they didn’t happen often but every time they did she felt her affection for the human double. Catra ended the hug by licking the other girls face until she giggled and stepped back, wiping at her cheek. 

“Ewww, that’s gross Catra!” Her laugh ended with a snort as she gazed at her secret friend with wide eyes that glowed with affection.

Catra’s heart always swelled when the other girl used the name she had bestowed on her when they were small.

Adora gazed at her secret friend, drinking in all of the little changes in her over the last few months. The cat-girl continued to be long limbed and full of ropey muscle, though the blond noticed that those muscles were growing larger, filling out to show how strong she was. Her fur was shinier now than it had been when they were younger, and her mane was wild as ever. She lacked the ungainly quality that made up Adora and her peers and the girl couldn’t help but wonder if Catra were younger than her. As always, she was shamelessly naked. 

Adora could see her friend looking at her with questioning eyes and realised that the other girl was confused about why she was out here. Adora found herself explaining, as clearly as she could for the benefit of Catra’s still limited language skills, that she had to make her way back to the tents. The revelation left the cub chortling, noting that her friend could just follow her back to camp.

“That’s cheating Catra, I’m supposed to make it on my own.”

“Why?” Large ears flicked towards her, attentive for her answer.

“Why? Because we’re all supposed to be using our survival skills to survive, if I follow you I haven’t done that.” Rules were something that the cadet was very good at following.

“Shouldn’t you use all best chances for winning?” She knew her words were not quite right, and it frustrated the cub when she was with Adora.

“I’ll think about it.” The blond walked closer and gently bumped a furry shoulder. “I have three days before I have to be back, why don’t you finally show me that cave of yours? I’d love to meet Light Hope.”

Catra’s eyes grew as big as saucers, large pupils gleaming as her ears pricked and fur puffed up all over her body. Her excitement was palpable. She had longed for less fleeting companionship from Adora, always feeling more alone after each meeting. After growing up as a solitary creature for so long, when the chatty little red clothed creature had burst into that clearing so many seasons ago, things had changed. After she’d woken her with that seed to the forehead, saving her from sanction she had found herself drawn back to her over and over again.

At first it had been just watching her from the trees and then she was gone. The second time, after the seasons had changed, the blond had sought her out; picking through the trees and back to the clearing, calling out with sounds that the cub had barely understood but could not resist even then. The kitten had sat above her in the trees and rained down leaves and berries like snow while this interloper had laughed in glee. It had finally been that laughter, full of gasped snorts that had lured her down from the tree to stand before her.

The two children had stared at each other that day, drinking in the oddness of the other. Hair and skin and clothing observed fur and teeth and claws. Communication had come slowly, the cub having only a fragile understanding of words that came from the Light Hope (or the Not-There as she knew her then) and the other not understanding animals at all. But as children will, they quickly learned to talk through play, the cub and child chasing and pouncing, laughter and growls swirled together.

It hadn’t been until they were almost ten that Adora had bestowed the name ‘Catra’ on her. The cub had no concept of names, not really. She knew ‘Adora’ was what the other child was but not that it was who she was. They had played a rousing game of night-time chase, the clothed girl getting better and better at making her way into the trees, and now sat in the thick branches of a very old tree. They were cradled in the limbs, Adora sitting with her back pressed to the trunk, legs stretched out on the large branch with the kitten’s head resting on her lap. Adora ran her hand over the other girls fur, twirling the longer hair in her mane around her fingers. Both of them longed for the comfort of touch that was denied to them in their respective homes.

“You should have a name,” the blond had blurted, making mismatched eyes turned to look at her face. “I am Adora and you should be somebody too.”

“I Cat?” It’s what the other girl said when she saw her.

“That’s like you calling me human,” she’d laughed like it was ridiculous.

“I Adora?” The cub was still not sure why it mattered.

“No, that’s me!” Her blue eyes squinted for a moment while she thought an idea through. The cub liked to watch her think, it sometimes took her a while but the forest dweller had time. “Why don’t we put the two together? Like Adat?” The little furred face sneered, “Ok, not that.” She chewed her lip, “What about Catra?”

“I Catra!” She liked it.

Three years later and Adora was still the only one in the world who knew her name.

Back in the here and now, Catra reached out and grabbed Adora’s hand in her clawed one, careful that her claws were sheathed. Grinning from ear to ear, fangs gleaming in the light of the day-moon, Adora didn’t think that she had ever seen a more appealing sight. She had never really seen the feline in the day before and marvelled at her red-brown fur and the dazzling colours of her eyes.

“Come with me then!” 

And then the two of them were running through the trees, one sure footedly dodging roots and fallen branches with the surety of one born to it while the other put their trust in her and kept pace at her side.


	6. Play

Daylight dappled through the canopy of the trees, casting diamonds of light over everything, including the two laughing girls as they came to a stop by a stream. The small cat stretched in the light, casually sauntering over to the slowly running water while her human companion bent double, hands on her knees and breathed deeply to get some air back into her lungs. Adora may be the best cadet in her year but the stamina of her wild friend was humbling, the child decided she would do more cardio in training so she could keep up better next time.

“Drink.” Catra crouched down by the stream, pointing Adora to it, before thrusting her face into the water and taking huge gulps of water.

Adora looked at her curiously, was she expecting her to do that too? The cadet reached into her pack and pulled out the large, metal canteen. As Catra sat back from the water, shaking the water from the fur on her face, she looked quizzically at the thing in the other girls hand.

“This is a canteen,” she saw the odd eyes still looking blankly at her, “its for carrying water around, look.” She opened the top, letting the cap hang down and poured a little water out onto the mossy floor, before bringing it to her lips and talking a deep drink.

Catra walked towards her, mesmerised by this simple object that seemed so ordinary to her. Standing so close that Adora could feel the heat radiating off of her, the cat-girl waited for her to finish drinking before reaching out and taking the cool metal from her and examining it. She squealed and jumped back when she tilted it too far and water poured onto her hand. Adora felt the affection bubbling up from inside her as she watched Catra’s fascination, a broad grin spreading across her pale face.

“Canteen,” Catra felt the word on her tongue. It was new, another piece of language to slot into her brain to be able to better communicate with her friend. She passed it back so it could be placed back into the bag (that one she knew from food brought by the cadet) before they completed their journey to her cave, it wasn’t far now. “Come.”

The feline led her, at a leisurely pace this time, through low hanging branches and vines. It was always darker here, around the perimeter of the shiny mountain and her home, like the woods were trying protect her. The trees loomed their largest, shielding everything from view. Sometimes her home was not in the same place, but the woods always told her where to find it.

When they emerged into the almost perfect oval that was her home, Catra stood still and watched her firmed take in the sight. Something felt odd in her chest, it was not a feeling that she was familiar with. It almost felt like when she was waiting for the other girl, her heart beating too quickly and her breath catching in her throat. 

Adora’s jaw dropped as she look at the towering blue monolith in the centre of the unnatural circular clearing. It towered over her head, matching the surrounding ancient trees in height, tapering to pointed top from a large square base. Its outer surface was etched with strangely familiar markings that niggled at the back of his mind, whispering something just out of reach. Its walls glowed an unnatural blue, suffusing the area with an ethereal quality. Finally managing to pull her eyes away she took notice of the one part of the tower that was not perfect, a stone lump encased one corner, sticking out bulbously and marring the simple perfection of the shape. 

A furred arm brushed against her as the cub made her way past, toothy smile plastered across her face. When she realised that her companion hadn’t moved with her she reached out a hand, calloused by a life spend grasping branches, to grasp the other girl’s as it lay limply at her side. She tilted her head, catching her eyes, “Home now. Come Adora.”

The words shook the taller child out of her revery. She grasped the hand in hers tightly and excitedly followed the girl with the swishing tail. The word ‘home’ swirled around in her head. Home for her was a cold place, full of loud noises and rigid control. A place where the comfort of touch was fleeting and cool, discouraged among cadets and doled out by Shadow Weaver sparingly. Here, with Catra, touch was warm and given freely. She wasn’t sure what to expect from the wild ones home, but the anticipation made her giggle as they got closer to the small entrance.  
“Have to go low, Adora. Hole small.” She led the way, scrambling in on all fours with the young soldier following behind.

Once though the opening the cave wasn’t much bigger. The ceiling was high enough for an adult to stand in, but the circumference of the room was barely big enough for two people to lay down, side by side but Adora could see how it would be cosy to curl up in. There was a small cubby to one side, nestled against the side of the glowing blue building and the entire room was bathed in a feint blue light from the edge that was made from the wall of the monolith. It was eerily beautiful.

Blue eyes cast around the room and realised that, other than some very old bones that looked like they had been there for years, the room was bare. No sign of meat, or smell of animals. She didn’t really know what she expected from the kittens home. The idea of cuddling up at night in a safe and warm little cocoon here was very appealing yet the tiny empty space also made the blond feel very sad for her friend who must be so lonely so much of the time.

Catra saw the other girl looking around and moved over to the cubby.

“This where I sleep when I small. I too big now. Not as hot out here by my own.” Her face wore a childish pout that made Adora giggle and come and shoulder bump her affectionately.

“Tonight, and the next, we’ll stay warm together then.” She lifted her hand to run stubby fingers through the mane of wild hair beside her. “I am going to need to build a fire though.” Seeing questioning eyes turn to her she added, “I can’t eat fresh kills like you, we’re different.”

A flash of sadness passed over the furry face, it was fleeting but made the other girl feel bad for having said anything.

“But I can eat what you catch if I cook it,” this seemed to brighten the others sprints spirits.

Adora was excited to eat food that was really cooked. She wasn’t really sure how to do it, but she was a good cadet and she knew how to try her best. She had read lots of field survival journals and knew that you had to take the insides out and not let there be any blood or you would get sick. Eventually she and the others would be able to trap animals but that was a lesson they hadn’t got to yet. Thanks to Catra at least she wouldn’t have to eat the ration bars.

“You sleep in here with me?” The mismatched eyes looked hopeful.

“Of course, silly. We can snuggle up and tell stories.” Catra wasn’t quite sure what ‘snuggle’ was but she assumed it was something like a hug or cuddle, Adora had explained what those were while demonstrating and this word sounded like them.

Adora felt a peculiar sensation against her calf, and when she looked down realised that the cub’s tail was curling around her. Adora felt a blush rise to her face, she wasn’t sure why. She grinned goofily at her friend who smiled back. Uncurling her tail, Catra headed back towards the cave opening.

“I hunt. You stay. Be ready.” Adora understood that she was being told to set up what she needed to and waved as the cat exited.

It amazed Adora how far her friend had come with her speech. When they had first met when they were small, the feline had a handful of disjointed words, some of which Adora didn’t understand. It was clear that even though they saw each other only briefly throughout the year that Catra must practice, maybe even with Light Hope, who she had called The Not There until she had learned that things had names. 

Although she knew there was much to do, alone in the cave Adora could not help but approach the glowing wall. More of the strange line designs adorned it and worried away at her mind. She reached out a tentative hand to touch the sigils, hesitating inches from the surface. Her hand fell back to her side without making contact.  
__________

Lighting the fire was second nature to her now after so many trips to the wild. Adora had constructed a small fire pit, a happy little fire blazing away inside. She had laid out her bedroll on the ground inside the cave, making it as large as she could and put her blanket on top. Outside she now sat with her legs crossed waiting for the hunt to end.

It wasn’t long before a light brown blur flew out from between the trees. Catra came to a tumbling halt feet from the fire, a large white furred thing clutched in her clawed hands. Adora had seen Catra after a hunt more than once, blood spattering her face and chest but those were small birds and mice. Nothing had prepared her for the mask of red that now painted the other girls lower jaw, her fangs were stained and her chest was caked in gore like her claws. The blond blanched at the sight of so much blood. The cub just looked elated.

“Big food. I gutted for you.” The animal was thrust out to her with pride.

Adora stuttered a thanks as she took the gory corpse, pretty sure that she would have to use her knife to skin it. Unsure how that would be done. She pulled her bag over, drawing out the blade which caught the eye of the youth sitting opposite and licking the blood from her hands and claws.

“Why?” She gestured to the hand now holding the weapon.

“Oh, I have to take the fur and the skin off I think…” though honestly she wasn’t sure.

Catra rolled her eyes and held out a hand, cautiously Adora handed over the animal unsure what the other intended. With a few flicks of her wrist Catra used her claws to separate flesh from fur with ease. Though she had no need to do it for herself, days alone with little to do but hunt and feed had meant she made up things to entertain herself. Skinning her kills had been one, picking berries another.

Skewering the kill on a stick she handed it back and Adora placed it over the fire. 

_____________

Licking her fingers, belly pleasantly full, Adora decided she was pleased with her first attempt at cooking. Yes, the outside of the meat had been rather black in places and crispy in her mouth, but the flavour had been like nothing she had ever tasted. Her mouth had watered the whole time as she gnawed the bones. She had offered the cooked meat to the cat-girl who pulled a disgusted face at the first bite and thrust it back to her. While the Horde cadet sat and peacefully ate her dinner, the cub ran back into the woods to get herself something fresh.

When Catra returned this time Adora knew that she would have to do something about the furred body being coated in blood. There was no way that she could sleep next to her like this. She had long become accustomed to the others nakedness, Catra’s body still looking much as it had when they met at eight (or Adora assumed her friend had also been around the same age, truthfully she could be younger), just longer. Adora’s had started to go through the vicious changes wrought by puberty and she wasn’t enjoying it.

“Can we go to the river to wash up?” She knew that there were small streams running here and there and figured a larger stream must be close.

Catra jumped to her feet, once again grabbing Adora by her hand and hoisting her to her feet before pulling her along. It didn’t take long before she could hear the trickling sound of water before they came upon a river with a low moving waterfall at one end. It was small but leant the place a tranquil feeling.

Even though the air was cool, it wasn’t cold so Adora tore of her clothes and waded into the water, hoping that Catra would copy her actions, self conscious about asking her friend to wash. Catra followed without question, wading up to her neck before the human child knew what was happening, and them she was gone beneath the surface. She resurfaced soon after, cleaned of the blood and gore. She pounced over to Adora and shook the spray from her head all over her friends face, then laughed at her look of disgust and walked out of the water to lay on a rock in the hazy afternoon light. Adora waded out far less gracefully and plopped down beside the reclined figure, still naked herself.

They lounged like that, swatting at each other from time to time, occasionally talking but mostly just enjoying each others company. Until Catra leapt from the rock, ear twitching back and forth. The afternoon was fast approaching evening, the light fading, and it was clearly time to go. Adora had slipped back into her clothes as soon as her body had dried so when Catra led them away, fur standing on end around her body, she followed straight away.

Back at the clearing the fire had burned down and the cadet made sure it was out completely before they crawled back into the cave, Adora dragged her pack along with her. Catra was obviously unsure about the feel of the bedroll and the blanket under her feet and was walking in such a cute was that Adora couldn’t help but giggle at her. With her fur puffed up from drying on the rock and her odd movements she was the most adorable thing the twelve year old had ever seen.

“This is for sleeping in. It’s called a bed. We sleep under the blanket.” The feline seemed satisfied with this and laid down by the cave opening, meaning that the bigger girl had to move around her and be closer to the monolith wall. She pulled off her shirt, boots and pants, leaving her in her undershirt and boxers. She hunkered down with her back to the wall, facing the other child with the blanket wrapped around her shoulder. 

The light was fading and the blue glow, rather than being a distraction, was soothing. Adora reached out a hand and laid it onto the other girls shoulder.

“C’m here,” her voice had begun to blur with fatigue and she realised she was exhausted.

The cat curled into her, burrowing her head under the blonds chin. Adora found herself running her fingers through the fluffy fur on her back which seemed to sooth both of them if the purring coming from under her chin were anything to go by. Both of them began to relax into each other, breaths getting longer and deeper unit the cave was filled with gentle snores and occasional purrs.


	7. Rain

The harsh crack of thunder shot through the body of the blond like a gunshot, causing her body to jolt into a sitting position and cast her eyes around her dim surroundings fearfully. The loud hush of rain could be heard from outside, drops beating faintly on the roof of the cave. For a moment the little human was surprised that there was no water inside, but remembered the oddly sloping design of the cave. Fighting to get her heartbeat back to normal, Adora felt a hand grasp her wrist and almost jumped out of her skin.

Catra’s eyes, blinking up at her, were luminous in the blue glow. She took in her friends jagged breathing, the light sheen of sweat on her brow and the sound of her rapidly beating heart and realised that she was very afraid. Rather than sitting up with her, Catra grasped her wrist more tightly and urged the other girl to lay back down with her. This time she wrapped herself around the trembling girl and began to purr in a low, unbroken rhythm that she remembered her mother using for her when she was small and afraid.

But Adora was not a kitten and maybe words were needed here too.

“Just rain, Adora. We safe. Secret place.” She felt the other girl relax into her, going almost boneless as she burrowed into the embrace. “Go sleep.”

Soft puffs of breath were soon ruffling the fur across her chest, the weight of the other girl feeling odd but not uncomfortable at her side. It had been so long since the cub had company that was warm and alive inside her home that she stayed awake and revelled in it for long minutes before the beating of the rain and the warmth that surrounded her lulled her back into a deep sleep. 

________________

When Adora next woke it was to weak dawn light struggling through the narrow entrance of the cave. The sound of the torrential rain was still pounding on the roof of the cave, the air inside having taken on a chill, especially with the small furry body absent. Adora snuggled deeper into the single blanket and waited for her benefactor to return; it wasn’t like she could build a fire in this weather even had she wanted to.

Yawning widely, and huffing out contentedly, Adora realised that she felt more rested than she ever did after a nights sleep in the barracks, even though she had been curled up on the floor. Perhaps it was the comfort of being curled up with another person, being able to know she wasn’t alone, that had helped her young body to relax. As she rubbed her cheek into the blanket that came up as far as her ears she became very aware that she was only in her underwear. Something inside her made her flush and reach out a probing hand to grab her shit and pants and pull them into her warm cocoon. Not wanting to expose anymore of her flesh to the air, she wriggled and contorted herself back into her uniform, then scooted her back to the wall, crossing her legs and keeping the blanket over her as she waited for Catra to return.

Long minutes stretched out as she waited, her eyes beginning to droop again as the steady cadence of the rain lulled her back into an almost trance like snooze until a small body lurched through the opening in the cave wall. The thud of the body coming to rest against the wall had Adora up and ready for an attack until her addled brain realised where she was and who she was with.

“Hey Adora,” the big toothy grin that was shot her way made the pre teen smile back dopily as she took in the soaked and bedraggled state of her friend.

“You’re soaked,” it blurted out of her mouth as things often did for the blond, before she could think of anything better to say.

“Bad out. I brought you food.” The sodden girl triumphantly held up a sack made from some sort of torn cloth the cat must have found at some point in the woods, stuffed to bulging with something.

Adora moved forward in the small space and took the bag, putting it down and letting some of the contents spill out, she was charmed that her friend had braved the weather to fetch her food when there were perfectly good, well not good but edible, ration bars in her bag. What fell onto the bedroll were an assortment of brightly coloured fruits as well as some hard cased things she wasn’t sure how she was supposed to eat. Her eyes moved from the food, back up to the cub who was starting to shiver, water starting to pool at her feet.

“Catra, how do you get dry?” She certainly didn’t have any towels.

“I shake. I get everything wet if I do.” Oh, that was a problem. The space was so small that Adora realised Catra was right, everything would get damp but she couldn’t let her get cold.

Blue eyes travelled to the small alcove that Catra had told her she had slept in as a small child and an idea crept into the blond’s mind. Pushing the food back into the sack, she grabbed her coat, pack and blanket and stuffed them into the alcove, along with the food. She grasped the bedroll and sat with her back to her belongings and held the bedroll up like a shield, it was waterproof to protect the sleeper from the ground and large enough to keep everything dry. While all of this was happening the cub watched her with confused blue and yellow eyes.

“Ok Catra, now you can shake all the water off and everything will be fine.” 

Not needing to be asked twice, the cold water making her more uncomfortable by the minute, Catra contorted her body and shook vigorously, sending a heavy spray of water speckling the rough walls of the cave. Her fur puffed up, providing some insulation as her small body friend to warm itself, but her sharp teeth still chattered. Hearing the sound from across the room, Adora threw the bedroll bak onto the floor, before standing to wind the blanket around her still damp shoulders and pull the other child down to sit between her legs. Adora had snatched up her jacket and sat, back braced against the wall with Catra held in front of her in the blanket with her jacket over the top.

The kitten had taken care of her and now she would do the same. 

Catra purred against the uniform clad chest. After a few quiet minutes she butted her head into Adora’s chin and pointed at the bag of food still in the area that had been protected. “You eat Adora. I got for you.”

Hearing the urgency in the scratchy voice, and realising that her friend was concerned about her in a way that nobody else had ever been, Adora managed to stretch her arm our and snag the bag and pull it to her. The girl in her lap looked pleased, sitting up straighter to give Adora room to manoeuvre, but did not leave her personal space. The human child began to pop fruits into her mouth, their names a mystery but their colours and flavours a delight. Some burst with bright juices on her tong, while others were so sour that her eyes teared, but not unpleasantly. 

When finally her hand absently grasped one of the hard cased things, she drew it up and held it up between them with a question in her eyes, she knew that there was no way that she could bite through that, maybe Catra with her predators teeth could. Adora had seen her bite through bone before.

Catra reached forward and took it from her place hand before encasing it in her fist and squeezing. Adora watched, mesmerised as the well developed muscles in the cat-girl’s hand and forearm bunched and the thing in her hand made a crunching sound. With a satisfied smirk, the furred hand opened, palm up, revealing the dark outer case of the thing split apart, revealing a pale ball. The hand was thrust towards her, mismatched eyes watching expectantly. Tentatively she picked up the thing that had been revealed and popped it in her mouth, chewing carefully. It was tasty in a way different to the fruit. It was strangely waxy and crunchy with no juice but it made her mouth water. She hummed in pleasure and the kitten in her lap wriggled with happiness at a job well done.

Adora reached for another of the strange things, this time taking it in her own fist and trying to break it open. She squeezed first with one fist, then both together, until her face grew red with exertion and still it stayed stubbornly one solid pieces. Giving up she passed it back for Catra to break and then devoured several more as quickly as her friend could break them. 

Belly comfortably full, Adora again let herself consider the physical changes between the two of them. Catra was smaller and slighter than her and yet her muscles seemed to be stronger than their size would suggest and her hand in particular were very powerful. No matter how hard she trained, Adora’s were strong but would never possess the raw power needed to crush bone or propel herself through the trees. Adora knew that she would grow bigger and stronger, she was already one of the strongest cadets in her year, but she would never be a predator.

Catching the other girls eyes, they smiled shyly at each other, neither knowing why.

“Want me to teach you a game?”

______________

Much later, after a very confusing game of eye-spy, one of the few games that all of the children of the Horde picked up from each other, the rain had finally stopped and the pair of them stepped out into the chilly air of the murky afternoon light. The ground around the monolith was surprisingly dry. Puddles dotted here and there and yet the ground was not sodden and boggy as she had expected. A lot of things around the towering structure were odd, but Adora was twelve and so didn’t have the where withal to dwell on such things.

Both children needed to stretch, Adora bent double and touched her toes, feeling the muscles in her legs work as she moved. Standing back up she noticed that Catra was watching her and copying her motions, except where Adora could touch her toes, Catra could comfortable place her palms flat on the ground. Adora continued with the callisthenics that she had been taught, while the fired girl lost interest in that and began to bound around the clearing, soon using her claws to fly up the trunk on a tree.

Watching her, Adora realised that she felt more deeply for this child who she saw only fleeting every four months, than for any of her bunk mates whom she had spent each day with since they were five years old. A pang of guilt blossomed in her chest as she realised that she had not even speared a thought for the other three from her team. They had all been forced to make their own way in the rain, she imagined that Rogelio and Lonnie had managed to find cover but Kyle had probably spent a miserable night soaked to the bone.

Just as the girl was about to spiral into a pit of self recrimination she was hit between the eyes with a seed pod. She flinch back and rubbed at the small red spot it had left before looking up, huffily, at the grinning cat disappearing further up in the tree.

“Come Adora,” the retreating figure called, ensuring she made enough disruption in the treetops that her human companion would be able to follow.

Compelled to keep up with Catra, Adora quickly reached down and scooped up the seed, grasping it tightly in her hand as she jogged through the trees under her guide. The rough casing of the seed felt comforting in her hand, a reminder that one of these was how the cub had first made contact with her. She hadn’t known it at first, but once she had the words Catra had told her about that morning when she was eight and asleep at her post.

______________

The second time Adora’s cadet troop had gone to the Whispering Woods she had just turned nine, it almost felt like this training exercise was to celebrate that. The weather had been warm, spring rolling into summer with sleepy ease and each of the four children had felt excitement course through them to be free of the Fright Zone’s darkness.

This time their group had been matched up with a brigade of older cadets, six in total, all between fourteen and sixteen. These cadets were on the cusp of adulthood, a couple even heading towards Force Captain positions of their own. Adora had been working her whole life to emulate soldiers like these, to make Shadow Weaver’s absolute faith in her justified. Her guardian had told her to stay close to the oldest of the trainees and observe them, to keep focused. She had vowed that she would, but as the forest had grown closer her thoughts strayed to the cat-girl she had caught a glimpse of last time.

Little Adora had tried to keep focused on the various tasks and assignments she was given, but everybody noticed that she was unusually sloppy, her eyes straying to the trees over and over. The oldest two of the group they were trailing, Octavia and Scorpia, couldn’t be different in their approach their new wards. Octavia was brash and sharp with no time for mistakes, deeming Adora next to useless after the end of the first day, wondering why Shadow Weaver favoured her so. Scorpia was a softer soul, the younger of the two, she towered over everybody but still had the look of a child with her doughy physique and face not yet sculpted to adulthood. She tried to give Adora a chance to do better.

And Adora had done better after that, because the first night she managed to sneak back into the woods through the same spot as before. Unencumbered by the heavy jacket of before, she easily got through the gap and stepped into the clearing. There was no guard duty for the younger children. This time round, so she could look for as long as she needed, as long as she was back by morning.

Her thoughts had been immediately derailed when she had turned Witcher flashlight in hand, only to come face to face with the very girl she was thinking about standing barely a metre away. The haunting mismatched eyes regarded her with calm curiosity as she stared back, mesmerised. The glimpse she had caught of the smaller child last time before she scurried away had just shown her that it was a girl and part animal, but now she could see that she was small, almost delicate looking with fur that almost seemed amber in the torchlight. The fur spilled over her entire body, revealing striped patterns down her arms and across her stomach and legs. Blue eyes caught movement and noticed the tail that seemed to twitch and move with a life of its own. It was the massive ears that jutted comically from either side of the bush of hair on top of her head that really fascinated the human girl as she saw them move and twitch with each sound that came and went from the clearing. 

“Hello,” Adora whispered, desperate not to make this forest spirit run away again.

The cat-girl cocked her head to the side and scrutinised her with unblinking eyes. Maybe she couldn’t speak? In fact, the girl realised, it would make more sense that she couldn’t. Maybe she was an animal that just happened to look like a girl. Then those eyes blinked at her slowly, the ears twitched and a noise left the furred throat.

“Hello.” It was gravelly, distorted and clearly strange in the creatures mouth but it made Adora’s face bloom into a beaming smile.

______________

The warm memories of their first real meeting nestled in her chest as she continued to follow her wild one through the forest, trying not to get her boots stuck in too much boggy mud on her way. It hadn’t taken her long to realise that the reason Catra had taken to the trees was because she hadn’t wanted to be covered in mud. She hoped that they were getting close to their destination, her stomach was beginning to rumble even after all the fruit.

Her thoughts were answered when Catra landed with a dull thud on the ground just ahead, reaching back with one hand, waiting for the warm feel of Adora’s to slip into its grasp before pulling her out into yet another small clearing. It was like the Whispering Woods was full of tiny pockets between the almost impenetrable trees. Adora had heard the older soldiers talk about how the labour of the woods seemed to move at will, something here one day and gone the next, but she had never seen any evidence of that while she was with Catra.

At the centre of this place there was a ramshackle hut, covered in vines and looking like it had grown from the roots of the trees that it sat beside. From within Adora realised she could hear the sound of somebody moving around and the occasional muffled word, and was that hum?

Unexpectedly Catra pulled her directly towards the hut with careless abandon. The blond had never known her friend to approach anybody but her so was deeply curious about who, or what, might live here. Beside the window there was a lidded box which the cat reached for, opening it and pulling out a bolt of cloth. She shook it, releasing Adora’s hand, as she pulled it over her head, revealing it to be a long night shift. It was so odd to see the feline clothed that it almost made her do a double take.

Grinning, Catra grasped her hadn’t again and they walked into the hut as she called, “We here Razz.”

“Wildling! Come let me see you!” A tiny woman, so old that Adora had no way to categorise it from her own experiences, turned towards them. Her wild, white hair stood around her head in a mane as wild as Catra’s own, and her eyes blinked owlishly from behind thick spectacles.

Catra dropped Adora’s hand and walked over to the lady, a deep purr rumbling from her chest as she wound her body around her and wove around her body in a much more cat-like way than Adora was used to seeing. There were a few cats dotted around the Fright Zone, lured in by the abundance of mice and other vermin, and she had petted a few, had enjoyed it when they wove around her hand or between her legs to show affection. Now she was watching as her friend did the same. The old woman patting her affectionately on the head until she finally seemed to notice the other girl standing self consciously in the door way.

“You’re very early Mara.”


	8. Razz

“You’re very early Mara.”

Adora wasn’t sure what to say. Who was Mara and why did this old woman think that was who she was? Before she could think of what to say; she couldn’t question the woman or tell her she was wring, twelve years of being under Shadow Weavers thumb had made her more than respectful to adults, older women in particular, Catra was laughing that rusty hinge laugh of hers.

“Not Mara, Razz.” She bounded back to the blonds side and pulled her further into the cozy hut. “This my Adora. I tell you bout her, remember?” She smiled broadly, fangs dipping her lower lip. Adora couldn’t speak for a completely different reason now, Catra had called her ‘her Adora’. It made a spark of something flare in her young chest, so rather than words she gave a dopey little wave.

“Ah, Adora now is it? It isn’t when I thought, but I am always glad to see you dearie.” The way the white haired woman spoke was unusual, and a little confusing, but the cadet liked it. It was nothing like her mentor’s.

The cub led her friend over to a threadbare armchair that faced the fire, its twin standing opposite and pushed her down into its depths before she made her way back to Razz and took her wizened hand, pulling her to join them. Catra was gentle with the small woman, in a way that she wasn’t with Adora. It wasn’t that she was rough, exactly, with the human child, but sometimes her claws would come out in excitement, or her strong hands would grip too hard. 

Once Razz was settled at the fireplace, the feline sat on the floor at her feet and rested her head on a red clad knee where withered hands made their way to the top of her head to pet at the thick fur like hair there, even running over her ears. Catra purred unselfconsciously as her mismatched eyes grew half lidded and far away. Adora felt like an intruder; watching something that the adult and child had done many times to be so comfortable. Yet, it warmed her to know that her friend was not as alone in the world as she had feared.

“Wildling,” Catra’s eyes snapped open at the word the accented voice used for her. “Would you go and collect old Razz some of those nuts you found me last time?”

Catra nodded with a smile, and looked over at Adora. “Those things with the tough case! Nuts, Adora! They called nuts!” The beaming smile on her face was infectious and Adora found herself repeating that word back. “Come Adora!”

The other girl went to stand from her chair, but a bony hand was suddenly clutching her wrist, guiding her to stay in the seat. Catra looked back from the entrance with a puzzled quirk to her head, gaze travelling from one of the humans to the other.

“You go Wildling, I want to spend a little time with Adora here. Now shoo, go fetch nuts for an old woman.” When Adora nodded and smiled at Razz’s words, she disappeared through the curtain and was gone into the woods.

Adora’s eyes stayed on the curtain for a while, something felt strangely ominous about being here without the furred girl. Not dangerous, but no longer comforting, The old woman was looking at her intensely through her thick glasses, eyes huge and very knowing. The child was almost startled when Razz began to talk.

“The Wildling is small sometimes, when she comes. Ears and fluff and giggles. Such a sweet child. Other times she isn’t. Sometimes when Razz sees her she is not the Wildling, she is Catra.” She seemed to notice that Adora looked puzzled. “Then she is angry and full of hate. Dressed like you, but not like you.” The woman looked even older for a moment, as if that were even possible. “Sometimes old Razz is very afraid.”

Adora couldn’t understand what she was being told. How could this old woman know Catra when she was a grown up? They were both children. She couldn’t even comprehend a world where her best friend, and she was even though they saw each other so infrequently, would be in a Horde uniform or angry. She was the softest person she knew.

Silence stretched between them, and the girl though that Razz had fallen asleep by the fire when a hand shot out to rest on her knee. She met that penetrating stare for a second time, blinking owlishly; wondering whether there had been a question that she was supposed to answer. 

“Sometimes you are older too.”

“I…” before the girl could formulate a response, and really what response could she give to this woman who seemed to know the future and the past, who seemed to know her but be confused by who she was, a blur whizzed into the room. 

Now unclothed as she was used to, the shift filled with nuts, Catra looked very pleased with herself. She once again fell to her knees beside Razz and offered up her haul in some kind of tribute. Razz smiled fondly and ran her hadn’t back across the top of the child’s head, accepting the make shift bag into her lap.

“Clothes in the house, kitten.” Something in Adora stuttered and for a moment she felt very sad. Those words in that tone meant something more, something unidentifiable to the cadet. Sometimes Shadow Weavers voice would sound similar, the words almost identical, but there was always an edge of reproach not softness.

They stayed a little while longer, eating nuts and no more strange words were said.

As they were leaving, a small satchel of nuts for Adora held in Catra’s clawed grasp, Razz reached up and patted both girls on the cheek.

“Come back soon for pie, Mara dear.”

A shiver ran up the blond’s spine at hearing that name again.

_______________

Back in the cave, bellies filled with warm meat and berries that they had scavenged and hunted along the way home, Adora had nailed a bird with a small knife all the cadets were given on exercise and was particularly pleased with herself, they cuddled together on the bedroll. It was’t night yet, but the rain clouds were quickly overtaking the sky once more, the brief fire they had been able to light for cooking Adora’s meal would soon be put out. 

“Catra, when did you find Razz?” After the old woman had mentioned a much smaller feline, Adora had grown curious.

“When the big ones went away.” The cub was stretched out on her back, eyes closed as her tail flickered around, tickling her bedmate as it passed her by, seemingly unbothered by the conversation.

The blond turned onto her side, propping her head up on her hand so she could look down at the other girls face. “Catra, do you mean your parents?” Parents were a strange concept to the Horde cadet. As far as she knew she had been under the care of Shadow Weaver since she was a baby. Often the child recruits were handed over after battles or taken when they were toddlers. She had heard people like that talk about remembering ‘parents’. Had even asked about them and been told that they were the adults that children lived with and who raised them. After that revelation she had asked Shadow Weaver if she were her mother and been coldly scolded for such childish notions (she had been six at the time). 

“Think that what Razz said. They were bigger. Look like the things in the wood that run on all their legs. No,” she moved her thumbs, “these. Not faces like you and me.” She reached over and patted the furless face beside her with a soft smile, even as her eyes stayed closed.

“You mean,” Adora wasn’t really sure what she was asking. “You mean that they were like the animals in the woods. They weren’t like you?”

“No one like me,” it was said so low that if she hadn’t been watching her friends face Adora wasn’t sure she would have heard it.

“How can you know that?” Sure, the blond had never seen anyone among the ranks of the Horde who looked like her friend but it didn’t mean she was alone.

“Light Hope.” Odd eyes blinked open, finally, to fix her with a troubled look.

“Light Hope told you?”

“Said I a,” here she paused, obviously trying to grasp at a word she had heard maybe once before and hadn’t understood, “mutt. Mountain made me. Nobody else. Why she comes to me.”

Clearly the illusive Light Hope knew more than he had told the cat girl. Mutt didn’t seem like the right word, Adora resolved that she would find some way to find out what her friend was. She was made by the mountain and her parens were normal animals - she was sure she could find out more about what she was back at the Fright Zone.

She pulled the smaller girl into her arms, feeling her curl into her own body. It was still early but the two children rarely got to sleep long hours; one because of duty and the other out of fear. As the rain outside finally broke free from the clouds and the patter began to once again film the cave, they relaxed together. This time tomorrow Adora would need to be back with her group and Catra would be alone in her cave again, but for now they could take comfort in each others warmth and the beating of hearts that needed each other more than they knew.

_____________

Darkness shrouded the forest. The dead of night wrapped the sleeping children in its soft embrace, the ethereal glow that suffused the cave intensified for a moment and then was lowered again.

A figure stood, body partially engulfed in stone, eyes fixed on the larger of the two who slept before it. The stare was cold and intense, taking in every line of her face. Recording. Documenting. Assessing.

It was not the first time those eyes had set their sights on that face. This time the girl would not be lost to it. The animal would make sure of that.

In a handful of years, their destiny would be fulfilled.

A cold smile suffused the otherwise still face as the figure disappeared into the wall once again.

______________

Morning came hot and bright, the humidity left in the air from two days of rain suffocating. Adora woke with a sheen of sweat over her skin and Catra’s fur sticking to her and starting to itch. She rolled away from the gently snoring cat and threw back the blanket before sitting up with her back against the glowing blue wall. It was cool against her skin, making a shiver run up her spine and the hair on her arms stand on end. Today she would have to make her way back to base camp. She didn’t want to go!

She let her head fall back to thud gently against the surface behind her. That wasn’t true, she did want to go home, much as she loved it here she missed her bunk and the familiar sights and sounds of home. She missed the sound of Shadow Weavers voice and the way that the eyes of her mast would squint when she was pleased with something that Adora had done. It wasn’t that she wanted to stay here; it was that she wanted to stay with Catra. More than once, she had considered asking her feline friend to come back to the Fright Zone with her. Surely the Horde would love a creature like Catra, her speed and strength, her claws that could cut through far more than flesh. 

No, she didn’t ask because she knew that Catra would hate it. Hate the noise. Hate the smell. Hate wearing a uniform and following orders. She was a forest creature; when they had been small Adora had even wondered if she made up the furry girl in her imagination. She was the spirit of the trees, the howl of the wind. Bringing her back to the Fright Zone would be like putting a moth in a jar and watching it flap futility at the glass until its wings broke and it suffocated.

Adora would go back. She would continue to become the best soldier that she could be. There would be more field exercises and more chances to see her friend and, she vowed to herself, when she was Force Captain, she would be able to bring a skiff out here any time she wanted.

Trying to shake off the strange melancholy, the child moved to pull on her clothes and repack supplies into her bag. The tinkling sound of the metal zippers finally made the cat stir, stretching until her joints popped and her mouth opening in a wide, sharp yawn. Big, hopeful eyes fluttered open as she looked around for Adora, catching sight of her in the corner by her small alcove.

“What doing, Adora?” It seemed so strange to see the human child putting her things away.

“I have to go back today Catra, I’m expected to get back in good time. As it is I know that we’re much closer now than when they dropped me off.” Colour suffused her cheeks as she felt the shame of cheating creep up her spine. She wouldn’t change the last couple of days for anything, but while she had been well fed, clean and dry, her companions had probably all had the worst days of their life. The least she could do would be to get back early.

“I take you.” She was crouched on all fours now, having sprung up among the blankets and was gently bouncing, ears and tail twitching merrily, not picking up on the dour mood of her friend.

“I can’t let you. I have to make it back by myself.” Adora didn’t make eye contact, just tucked away some of the nuts and berries that they still had.

There was a low sound from the blankets, like a low, keening growl that spoke more of disappointment than any words could. With a sigh Adora went back to the bed and sat down with Catra, wrapping and arm around her shoulders and drawing her in for a hug.

“I’ll be back in the spring, you can show me all of the new things that grow then. Maybe we can even see Razz again?” It seemed like such a long way away when she said it out loud but she received a smile and a nod in return.

Leaving the blankets and bedroll in the cave, Adora squeezed back out into the world. The heat was even more oppressive out here. Catra followed, flicking here eyes back and forth between the blond girl and the cave entrance, a question clear in her eyes.

“I’m leaving the blanket and the bedroll for your. It’ll keep you warmer in the winter, you told me you got cold now you sleep in the big area, remember?”

She was unprepared for the fast moving ball of fur that tackled her onto her back, leaving carat crouched over her. Clawed hands draped her shoulders as a sharp featured face lowered down to rub against her jaw and let out a little purr.

They stayed together until the day moon reached its peak, Adora knew that she couldn’t be more than a couple of hours away from camp. They laughed and tussled and tried not to be sad. When it was time for her to leave, still insistently alone, Catra was at least allowed to point her in the right direction.

Shouldering her pack she set out into the trees.

__________________  
Unsurprisingly Adora was the first cadet back by a solid six hours. Her early return and good condition made her lorded by the older cadets. Scorpia gave her a hearty hug while even Octavia cracked a congratulatory grin. She pulled some of the nuts out of her back and explained that she had seen animals eating them, not strictly a lie and Hordak knew that Adora was not a good liar, and offered them to the older cadets. Some had scavenged them before, while others seemed childishly excited to try the treat. It further solidified her as someone to be given their respect.

When Lonnie appeared through the trees at nightfall, Rogelio close behind, they too were congratulated. So far as a team they had made their way back in almost record time. If Kyle could return by morning they would receive a commendation. If Kyle made it back.

Adora was almost able to put Catra out of her mind, so exciting was the atmosphere back in camp, full of the anticipation of success. Almost.

None of them were really expecting Kyle to get back in time. They knew he was their weak link. They all cared for each other and though taking care of Kyle could be frustrating he had a good heart and kind disposition that the group needed. He was good at some things, they would throw all their paperwork at him and he would do it well. Physically though, he had yet to blossom. Imagine the surprise of the entire group when, shortly before dawn, Kyle stumbled from the trees as if pushed, looking as confused to be back as they were to see him.

After a moments hesitation Adora and Lonnie let out a whoop of excitement as Rogelio rushed past them to lift the skinny boy onto his shoulders and runs a little victory lap around the tents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, all that warm fluffy goodness is about to take a dark turn...  
> Something wicked this way comes.


	9. Home

Scarlett robed arms lifted and red magic crackled along grey-green fingertips, igniting the scry and revealing a crystal clear image of a smiling blond face. The scope of the vision expanded out from the blond child, encompassing the whole of the glade where the skiff sat. White eyes tracked the movements of another of her favourites, Octavia, as she rested a hand proudly on Adora’s shoulder and the smaller girl bloomed at the obvious praise that was being showered on her. Shadow Weaver did not bother to hear the words, she already knew that the blond foundling was the best cadet she had ever seen, she had made sure of that from the moment the babe had been placed in her arms and she had felt a wash of power from her. 

The sorceress continued to hold the scry, even as she worked her way through the mind numbing paperwork that was the curse of being second in command of the Horde. Hours passed as she noted the dark girl and the lizard come out of the woods. A good time. If only the scrawny one would pull himself together they could have the best times of any group before them. Not for the first time she wondered why she had not illuminated the blond boy, he was sickly, weak and clumsy. And yet… Perhaps it was because he looked so like her favourite, they could almost be twins. She shook her head at her own sentimentality, Adora was a means to an ends and nothing more, getting back to reviewing reports. 

As dawn’s light endeavoured to weakly break the horizon, the witch considered stopping to get some rest, but the embrace of sleep had long since lost its appeal. A few moments with the source of her powers and she would feel rejuvenated in a way that sleep could never offer. Standing from her desk, the tall woman stretched the kink out of her back and allowed her eyes to once again focus on the group of children, still three when they should be four. Adora’s opportunity to be at the top brought low by others. It firmed Shadow Weaver’s resolve that she should continue to push the child to isolate herself from her peers. 

Raising her hand to call a stop to the vision, it halted in mid air as she caught sight of movement high up in the trees. The swaying of the branches on the windless morning drawing her focus, it was too much to be caused by a bird or squirrel. Something far larger was there, watching the group. Her eyes squinted, moving her fingers to focus the vision on that area. As suddenly as it had begun the swaying of the canopy ceased, but a ripple in the air remained. She felt the same sensation as when she was close to Adora, that frisson of a power not quite of this world. 

Before she could ponder further, she was shocked to see the boy stumble out of the trees beneath where the disturbance had been. He was filthy and wet from head to toe but had, miraculously managed to fall into the clearing with enough time to make an obvious cheer go up from all of the cadets, young and old.

Adora remained the best.

______________

Triumphantly, the quartet arrived back at The Fright Zone, feeling like they could single handedly take on every princess out there. The skiff ride back had been bathed in hazy light; shimmering pools of rainwater dotted the wasteland between the woods and home, like jewels for the victors. Adora and her team were riding high on the praise of their elders. Lonnie had been tucked into a group of the older cadets, while Rogelio and Kyle had huddled together to reconnect. Adora had noticed that the blond boy was especially animated as he related something to his lizard companion; she wondered what that was about. 

Adora had been the first to jump from the skiff, eager to share her success with her mentor. Each force captain she passed on her way saluted her, some winked, and for a moment the girl could see the future she had been promised get tantalisingly close. Her desire to get to her mentor grew stronger as she began to run through the corridors as she had as a child. She had always looked up to Shadow Weaver, wishing only to the woman happy and proud. Sometimes she wished she could see her face, always obscured by the mask, to know for sure that when white eyes squinted just-so it was the smile that she thought it was. 

Talking with Catra about parents had brought that old ache for Shadow Weaver to be ‘mother’ back but the young blond knew better than to ever bring it up again. Even if ‘mentor’ and ‘mother’ were so close in her mind. Her mind flittered to the cat-girl for a moment and a different part of her heart stuttered. She missed her already, more than she ever had after a meeting. The days and nights together had been warm and comforting, something that she had never had before. She longed for it again after only a day apart.

Soon her feet brought her to the familiar corridor leading to the Black Garnet chamber. Realising that her joyful trek through the woods, coupled with the skiff-ride and her rush to the room had undoubtedly left her a rumpled mess. Shadow Weaver wouldn’t approve, no matter how well she had done and she wanted nothing to but that praise. Even though she wasn’t sure, deep down, that it was earned.

Detouring to the locker room, the child quickly shucked out of her dirty uniform, throwing it into the laundry shoot and quickly wiggling into the clean set in her locker. She threw water on her face and hands to get rid of the dirt and quickly retied her pony tail. Staring at her own reflection, she saw Chief Cadet Adora, Shadow Weavers protege. Gone was the wild girl fro the woods. She missed her but she knew she had to fulfil her destiny to lead the Horde to victory over the princess and free all of Etheria. After that, maybe she would be able to run free with Catra.

With slower, more controlled steps Adora made her way to the Black Garnet Chamber and walked inside. She was greeted with the dull, red tinged light cast out by the mystic stone. The room was always a bastion of shadowed corners and unseen spots where anything could hide. Adora knew that the other cadets feared this place and it’s darkness but to the girl it felt like home. Walking to the desk, she took her position at parade rest and waited to be seen, to be noticed. 

Minutes ticket by as she waited, mind drifting back to the woods and another room bathed in an otherworldly light. She was tired, pale eyes heavy lidded, and her body craved sleep beginning to sway slightly even as she fought to stay upright. A movement at her back made the child stiffen, drawing up to her full height from her exhausted slump. A long fingered hand settled on her shoulder and she was guided round to come face-to-face with her guardian.

“Do you have something to tell me cadet?” The voice purred from behind the mask with its familiar hypnotic drawl.

Adora was sure that Shadow Weaver knew what she had accomplished, she always did. Yet, so far, she had never seemed to know what happened in the woods. It was as through they passed a veil across the sorceresses view. Adora hoped that was still true. She wasn’t ready to share Catra with her mentor and she was a terrible liar.

“My team has recorded the best time for field manoeuvres. I managed to return in less than three days and Kyle made it back before sunrise. He is doing a lot better.” Adora was a good leader, the older woman recognised that, she gave those under command the opportunity to succeed and rendered praise. It was the overly kind hearted part of her nature that would need to be curbed. 

“Well done, Adora,” the long fingered hand moved from her shoulder to cup her cheek. “You have proved that our training and hard work has all been for the best. Remember, I look to you to become the saviour of this planet.” The words were so large to burden the shoulders of somebody so young, but Adora’s sense of self sacrifice had emerged early and meant that keeping her under the witch’s thrall was far easier. 

The young face, still soft with baby fat, split into a happy grin as the child relaxed into the touch. Even though the girl seemed pleased, Shadow Weaver sensed something not right about her energy, there was something new there. Something that she had felt before but was growing stronger. It may just be how she would manifest the power that the older woman had always known was there; it may be puberty. But it was certainly something that needed to be watched.

_________

Walking into her team’s barracks, she was greeted by a sudden hush falling over the three pre-teens that were already there. Kyle was sat squeezed between the two larger youths on his bunk, glancing up at her furtively through his shaggy blond hair. 

“Hi Adora!” His voice was too perky, cracking at the end of her name. The other two remained silent.

“Hi Kyle, guys, why’re you all being so weird?” Adora walked over to her own bunk, opposite the occupied one, and allowed herself to collapsed cross legged onto it. She gratefully pulled off her boots as she waited for somebody to speak.

Rogelio’s guttural growls softly filled the silence as he spoke too quietly make out into Kyle’s ear. Lonnie kept her cool gaze trained on her commander, clearly worried about what her reaction might be to whatever was happening here. Finally Kyle nodded and took a deep breath.

“Adora, something helped me in the woods! I was going round in circles for days and I knew that I was lost.” He swallowed and she watched his new Adam’s apple bob, his eyes glazing with tears. “I was sure I wasn’t going to make it back and that I’d be left for dead!” A tear slid down his face and Lonnie turned to him and wiped it away.

“Don’t cry Kyle! I wouldn’t have let that happen,” and the blond girl meant it.

He gave her a watery smile before he carried on, “Something found me that last morning. It was in the trees, I could feel it watching me. I was so scared, but it just threw some food at me. Them it growled that I should come and I followed it. I followed it all the way to camp; I’d been so close Adora! I would never have made it by myself. I only saw it once, when we got to the edge, I couldn’t find a way through and then this furry girl was in front of me. She had these amazing eyes,” His eyes moved around all three of his companions, “and she was a cat! She pushed me out of the woods as if she knew we were running out of time.”

Adora felt fear well up in her chest, she could barely breath. Nobody could know about Catra, not yet. The cat-girl would never survive if they went out and caught her, she wasn’t someone who could be caged. She had to make sure that the boy wouldn’t say anything.

“Kyle, that’s amazing!” She tried to sound happy and authoritative at the same time.

“You believe him?” Lonnie looked incredulous but pleased.

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I?” The other three sagged with relief. “But we shouldn’t tell anybody else. If they think that Kyle can’t fend for himself they might send him away…” She searched her mind for the worst fate imaginable, “to the mines. We best keep it between the four of us.” The other nodded, stricken at the very plausible idea.

Adora let out a gusty sigh that the others took for exhaustion but was actually relief. Typically she was a terrible liar, but it seemed the fear and selfishness made her much more adept. She hoped that she would be able to keep Catra’s existence in this room for at least a little longer.


	10. Crystal Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What is Catra?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slightly shorter one today - mostly a little interlude to start putting my ducks in a row before they get messily knocked down.

Catra woke up feeling disorientated and exhausted. It had been a full turn of the night moon since Adora had left and she had helped the weak one, still two more to go before she could see her friend again. Her nights had been restless, even though she had the soft cushion of the bedroll and the comfort of the blanket which still held the scent of the other girl. It was as though the idea of loneliness had burrowed itself into her head and her heart and she felt very alone inside the cave that had given her sanctuary all her life. Many mornings she had woken feeling grumpy and sad, but not like this.

Finally managing deciding to open her eyes and greet the day, she snapped then closed again when she was engulfed in a searing white light. Squeezing them tightly together, she considered what could be going on. Was it the mountain? Sometimes it glowed brighter in the cave, especially when Light Home came to see her.

“Light Hope?” The words left her lips feebly, the fear in them clear as her voice trembled.

“Yes, child; open your eyes.” The cool, melodic voice reached out from the light and Catra could not help but do as it commanded. There had always been something about that voice that she seemed unable to resist.

Bracing herself for the burning of the light, her dual coloured eyes blinked rapidly to allay the tears she felt stinging there from the still too bright whiteness. Gradually, her vision began to clear and she could make out the shape of the room and Light Hope’s place in it. It was definitely not her cave and the hairs all over her body began to spike up in fear at the realisation. The room around her was vast, the walls and ceiling too far away to touch and everywhere filled with the same glowing lines and patterns that she could not understand which adorned the outside of the mountain.

Was she ‘inside’ the mountain? How was that possible? She had lived beside the monolith her entire life and knew that there was no way in, no opening or crack beyond the symbols and they afforded no purchase, she had tried. More than once, when she was first left alone, she had driven tiny claws into the fissures and pulled with all her might until her fingers ached and her claws bled. She had not been foolish enough to make that mistake a second time when it meant that her belly went empty for several days while her hands healed. Although, as she cast her eyes around the room, noting the reflective surfaces, pyramids of metal and Light Hope standing on a raised platform, it didn’t seem like she could be anywhere else.

“Where…” It slipped out even though she knew.

“You are inside the Crystal Castle, my child. It was finally time to bring you inside,” her emotionless face and melodic voice were no longer soothing to the cub, not after spending so much time with the genuine human warmth of Adora and Razz. Now it just felt foreign to her ears, ironic considering most of the language she had she had learned from this being.

“Why now?” Why not before when she was small and cold and so, so afraid? Why not when she had been bitten by the snake or fallen from the tree and not able to breath properly for days? Catra wasn’t sure what this feeling in her chest was. She knew the soft emotions well; care and affection, Razz and Adora doled those out in large quantities. She knew fear and pain, the things that kept her alive and alert. No, it was none of those, this was something new that sat in her chest and grew the more she looked around this warm sheltered place. Adora would know.

“You are ready to know your true purpose.” The girl wasn’t sure what a purpose was but the words made her ears fold close to her head. “You have solidified your bond with the chosen one; you have brought her here and will again when the time is right.” The words were too complicated, the ideas unclear in the mind of the wild one and her eyes darted around the room looking for some kind of escape.

“I…” the word slipped out of her mouth but any others became stuck in her throat and she felt choked on them.

“Come, I shall show you what you are to do.” Catra’s mind screamed at her not to follow but her feet complied and she could not stop herself.

The spectral woman led them through rooms and chambers with pulsing eyes sitting in the shadows, waiting. Even as she moved her mismatched cat eyes squinted into the darkness but could see nothing more of the things that lay in wait. She did not feel safe here. Light Hope no longer felt like something familiar and welcome.

Almost without her noticing they were outside in the forest again, it felt wrong. The air tasted of something unnatural and the wind felt alive like needles on her skin. Yet still she followed. They were soon in a clearing she had never seen before, roots twisted out of the ground in snarled fingers and mossy curtains hung down around them, cloaking the place in mystery. 

The thing that drew all of her attention, every ounce of focus, was sat at the centre gleaming like a beacon. It was shiny, shinier even than the mountain she had lived beside all her life. A jewel sat at one end and her hands itched to reach out and touch the horn like protuberance at the top. 

“This is why you were made. You are the guardian of the sword and its wielder. In time you will lead her to this place and you will ensure that she takes the sword, accepts all its gifts. She will save all of Etheria.” Catra had no idea what Etheria was, but she was sure that the girl she spoke of was Adora, who else could it be?

“Don’t understand!” It was a word she had learned from Adora.

“You don’t need to yet. You have much to learn.”


	11. Want

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not edited but a bigger update than usual as I missed a week.

Adora’s skin was crawling with anticipation. The world outside was unusually hot for the time of year, so much so that even in the Fright Zone felt it, some of the perpetual smog melted away by the natural heat. It was once again time for her to go back to the woods and nothing could have stopped her, not even Hordak himself. Four months ago they had arrived at the same location as always and set up their tents, this time as the previous exercises most successful group they were put in charge of two other squads of cadets swelling their ranks to twelve. They had not be accompanied by an adult or older cadets, just themselves. It had been a three day mission, with the only instruction to survive in camp together. 

Adora had excelled in command. The tent village had been much larger, and she had set them in a semi-circle facing the trees in case of attack. The rotation for night watch had meant that no cadet had to be on watch more than once due to their high numbers. They had eaten rations, played games and bonded as Adora was sure they were supposed to do. 

As always, Adora had snuck away each night in search of her feline friend only to be left bitterly disappointed as the clearing remained still and empty except for her. On the last night she had even tried walking further into the woods, getting so far as they stream but there had still been no sign of the other girl. She had considered delving further into the woods but fear of getting lost had made her turn tail and head back to camp.

Since then she had been counting down the days until she could search for her friend again. She hoped that nothing had happened to the smaller girl, that fear had sat in the pit of her stomach ever since she found out that Kyle had seen her. What if one of the other groups of trainees had found out and hunted her down? Or Catra had misjudged which group it was and been shot by an over zealous instructor? Bile crept to the back of her throat whenever she considered the possibility so she refused to believe it. Kyle swore he had only told the three of them about the cat-girl and she believed him.

They had packed themselves onto a skiff, the same group of twelve as before spread across three skiffs. Adora’s brow crinkled as she realised that they had only used two skiffs last time. Maybe they were taking more supplies? She turned to Lonnie, Rogelio and Kyle who were seated beside her, ready to ask what they thought when she felt the temperature of the room cool significantly and the lights dimmed. That could only mean one thing.

Shadow Weaver walked into the hanger, each of the dozen teens jumping to attention in the presence of their commanding officer. The imposing woman waved a hand, indicating that the cadets should all return to what they had been doing, most retaking their positions as the three pilots took their spots at the controllers. Shadow Weaver glided from vehicle to vehicle, appearing to check their preparedness. Adora’s eyes followed her every move. This was unprecedented.

Then she was standing beside Adora’s group and beckoned the blond to join her. The wordless gesture was a command that she was used to, so without question Adora jumped down from the skiff and joined her mentor who led her away to the corner of the hanger. Once there, she loomed over the girl.

“Adora, this is your second command in as many missions. I was pleased with the reports I received back from your last two expeditions,” Adora felt her chest puff up and colour flood her cheeks at the praise. “I wish to see for myself. I will be joining you.” She saw the girl’s eyes widen in shock. “Now, now, I won’t spoil your fun. I am a busy woman, I shall be there for part of each day but have my own work.” There was clear sarcasm in her voice, it sounded cloying and made Adora uncomfortable. 

“Having you with us will just make us even better Shadow Weaver, we aren’t there for fun after all.” She hoped that she had said the right thing, but worried that she had suggested that Shadow Weaver was a wet blanket.

“Good. I will expect nothing but the best then.” She turned, robes swirling around her as the shadows that hugged her rippled and seemed to carry her away. 

Adora felt oddly dejected as she trudged back to her spot on the skiff. All her ideas about hunting for Catra would be a lot more difficult now. Hopefully Shadow Weaver would see whatever she was looking for quickly and not return. Adora wasn’t sure why, she just knew that she didn’t want Shadow Weaver to see the cat-girl.

________________

Catra was exhausted, she knew that she should stay away from the cadets, not seek out Adora as she always did. Her limbs felt heavy, following her instructions just a little later than they normally would. It had been half a year since she had last seen the blond girl, Light Hope had kept the cub so busy with physical training and learning information about The Sword that she had missed the last training rotation and her heart ached at the loss. So, no matter how lethargic she felt, how loose and precarious her grip on the trees around her, she was going to at least get a glimpse of her.

She wondered if the other girl had missed her. Unlike Catra, Adora was always surrounded by other people and there was every possibility that she didn’t miss the cub as the cub missed her. Maybe she had even forgotten about her, which would put a wrench in Light Hope’s plans for the future. The idea of being left behind and forgotten clawed at Catra often in the last few weeks. Seeing Adora at set intervals had been a way to measure the passing of her life, and without it she had felt adrift, even though the hologram (a new word taught to her as part of her training) told her that this was her purpose. 

The feline had been watching the skies for days, her inner sense of time telling her that it must be close to the Horde’s arrival. Other groups came and went, Catra ignoring them as unimportant, sensing that Adora was not among them but her body had been screaming at her to find her. Last night she had sat in the trees, deliberately avoiding her cave so as not to find herself waking up back inside the Crystal Castle. She had woken to the sounds of skiff engines and the fur on her neck and shoulders standing on end as though every fibre of her being knew it was Adora coming and was reaching out to her.

Swinging from one tree to the next, Catra barely managed to grasp the branch she went for, feeling the terrifying lurch in her stomach as her body began to plummet until her claws found purchase in the wood and her body followed the swing of her momentum back to safety. Pausing to take a few gulping breaths, she felt her heart beat slow back to normal. She thought that maybe, as much as her exhaustion, some of her physical problems might be caused by her sudden growth. Since the last time she had seen the blond cadet the feline had grown taller and leaner with muscles that looked much more like those of the adult predators she sometimes had to avoid in the woods. It still made her clumsy as her reach changed but her body was slow to adapt.

Finally finding her way to their clearing, she sat in the junction of two branches that had become their shared perch over the years and waited.

_________________

The cadets mission this time round was a simple one, in teams of three head into the Whispering Woods and retrieve samples of flora and fauna. It was a standard mission, but any data that the Horde scientists could get about the woods would help them to eventually find out a way through the natural barrier that protected the princesses. Adora assigned teams made up from cadets from different squads, always trying to be a fair commander. Shadow Weaver had looked pleased with her decisions as the large group of cadets threw the camp up efficiently within minutes of their arrival. 

Though they were to delve deep into the woods, they were not to sleep in there but return each night to camp with their spoils tagged and bagged, ready to be sent back as fresh as possible daily. It would be four long, gruelling days full of forced marches and hunting for different animals and plants.

Gnawing away in the back of Adora’s mind was the real fear that one of the groups would stumble upon Catra and drag her back to camp in chains. It was unlikely, the cub knew the woods like her own skin but what is she was injured or asleep? What if somebody found the cave and the obelisk? Adora’s fourteen year old heart didn’t know if it could cope with the stress of cadets hunting in the woods, a missing Catra and Shadow Weaver breathing down her neck. The only solace she could take was that they weren’t sleeping in the woods and that Shadow Weaver would be gone in a couple of days. 

The first day passed with literal military precision, each group heading out to their specified vector and returning late in the day with sacks full of assorted specimens. One group was assigned the task of emptying all of the bags and ensuring that samples were labelled with their vector, meaning that even if samples were of the same plant they could trace any small changes from area to area. Adora was pleased as she watched the other young teens performing their tasks as she worked on the less than exciting paperwork that she was coming to realise would be a big part of her eventual life as a force captain, by the light of the flickering fire. Nobody had mentioned seeing an animal girl, and soon Shadow Weaver would head back with the samples and not return till morning and the girl could go in search of her friend.

Littler did the girl know that her mentor was hoping to find the very thing she was. Shadow Weaver was pleased to see that the gifted girl she lavished so much of her attention on was a good leader of people as well as adept at taking orders. She was also gratified that if they stumbled on whatever was producing that delightful magical signature they would return with it. While the children had all been out collecting flowers, vines and bugs, she had been using her magic to try to reach into the woods and seek it out.

The sorceress had hoped that here, closer to the source, she would be able to reach her magic beyond the vale and find what she was looking for but it was as though the very wood itself were alive, a breathing barrier that exuded district and rejected her magic probing. That wasn’t to say that she had felt nothing, her frustration had been somewhat allayed by the barest hint of residue still in the tree that she had seen on the cameras. All day she had walked the tree line, noting the barest hints of that energy that so resembled Adora’s peppered in the tree. The sensations were old and very faded but still present. 

If she couldn’t find what she was looking for this time she had countless teams to send out looking for her willow the wisp.

_____________

Catra had remained perched in the tree all day, the canopy effectively hiding her from any prying eyes that walked below, and to her surprise some decided not-Adora youths had passed through the clearing from a different entrance. She had watched as they passed just feet below and found the river, she had heard a splash and a disgruntled squeal from there before their voices faded into the distance. Taking the opportunity left by their noise travels she had dashed through neighbouring trees and staged two plums squirrels and a dozing bird, bringing the kills back to her perch. With enough food to last till nightfall she waited.

By nightfall she had dozed on and off and consumed two of her three kills; it was the best she had felt in months. There was little time to rest in Light Hopes simulations. Her brain ached with the knowledge that had suddenly been forced into it, her role as the Guardian of the Sword was important and she had to be the best. Adora was to be this She-Ra, the bearer of the sword and it would be her place to protect the protector. When Catra had realised that she would be the one to do that, after her initial confusion and frustrated anger faded, she had whole heartedly given herself over to instruction.

What that had meant was hours, sometimes days with little sleep, inside the mountain. Her sense of times vanished inside and she was drilled and trained to fight, to hide (that she was already good at), and to know everything that would every help Adora. She was still sat the start of her training, Light Hope had informed her that she was now thirteen years old and would need to be prepared. She had asked the projection if she knew the future and it had looked at her coldly and flatly replied that they did not. Catra had wondered how it could possibly know what was coming then.

The sound of fabric rustling as a body passed through the tight treelike brought her back to wakefulness. She looked down, not jumping from the branches until she could see that it was Adora far below. The blond hair shone in the moonlight as she trend her face up to scan for her friend. Catra felt her breath catch in her throat, maybe it was because she hadn’t seen the other girl for half a year, but her moonlit face looked more lovely than anything the cub had ever seen.

“Catra?” Adora’s voice was hushed, knowing that if she was there the cat-girl would hear.

Catra let herself fall to the forest floor, landing with a grace that she had not possessed that morning. Almost before she landed she was swept up in a tight embrace, her face pressed into the other girls neck as she inhaled her familiar metallic scent. Adora’s hands were tight against her back, smoothing the fur there and making Catra purr softly as her own hands gripped the taller girls waist. They stood like that, just existing with each other for a long time. Neither one felt the need to break the embrace, just to absorb that the other was there.

When finally they did break apart, Adora slipped her hand down to grab a clawed one and allowed herself to be led further into the wood, both girls sitting on one of the large boulders that bordered the river. The tinkling sound of the water as it moved rapidly down stream coupled with the nighttime sounds of small animals and instincts was so much more peaceful and yet so much more alive than anything that Adora experienced in The Fright Zone. It was something she only shared with the girl beside her.

The cadet brought Catra’s hand to her lap and played with her fingers as she looked sideways at her friend. She had realised that she had grown taller as she held her in her arms. The cub was still a little shorter than her but did not seem smaller than she had and Adora had grown significantly since they last saw each other. Her fur seemed thicker across her body and she was more muscular though still less bulky than the human girl. 

Adora looked down at her own chest, then back at her naked companion, although she was now in possession of a pair of fairly large breasts, something Lonnie teased her about, yet the cat-girls chest was the same as ever. She wasn’t sure why that struck her, or what she thought about it and tore her gaze away, blushing for reasons she couldn’t name.

Catra was happy to sit beside the girl and feel her play with her fingers. She watched Adora as Adora watched her, taking in her more voluptuous form and longer hair. She eyes the goofy hair above her forehead and it made her smile. She was just following the trail of a blush that was colouring the pale flesh from forehead to neck when her voice broke the stillness.

“I missed you,” it was something that they said to each other every time, but her voice had a sad quality that was usually missing.

“I was with Light Hope inside the mountain.” Blue eyes became very round as the girl turned on the stone to look directly at her. The hand not clutching her own reached out and traced her lips.

“You’re talking like me!” Catra hadn’t really thought about it, but yes the way she spoke now was more like the girl and the hologram, all of the time spent being instructed had changed her in more ways than she had realised.

“Must be talking so much with Light Hope.” She cupped the hand that still rested against her cheek. “I missed you too. I’ve been looking for you on every skiff I’ve seen pass through here. I waited in that tree to see you all day.”

Adora’s eyes crinkled in happiness as she smiled brightly at her. The smile didn’t stay though, quickly fading into a panicked grimace. “You shouldn’t be so close to camp in the day, my team is out collecting samples, they’re all over this area.”

“I know, a group passed under my tree earlier. Don’t worry they didn’t see me. I just had to be close to where you were.” She thought that would ease the blond’s fears but her grip on her fingers seemed to tighten further.

“I know you can hide from them. You need to be careful, my commanding officer is with is and she has magic. She might be able to sense you. I don’t want anyone to force you to come home with me. No matter how much I might want you with me all the time, I don’t think you’d like it there.” She tipped her head to bring their foreheads together. “She goes back at night so stay away until nightfall. Promise me.”

“I promise Adora.”

______________

The first two nights passed as they always had with the girls talking and playing, still chasing each other further into the woods. Catra would hunt Adora who would giggle and give her position away until she was pinned under the weight of Catra’s pounce. Except something felt different, both girls feeling something new when one held the other to the floor. Adora felt flustered and blushed often while Catra had to curb the desire to scent mark the other girl for fear of the lizard boy smelling it.

During the day both attended their duties, Adora garlanded by praise from Shadow Weaver for her skills as a leader and manager of people which delighted her. Catra was chastised for missing her training the previous day and made to work even harder, leaving her exhausted by nightfall but still determined to meet her friend and galvanised by her presence.

The third day Shadow Weaver did not return from the Fright Zone satisfied that she would find nothing there without some more research. Adora felt her entire being relax, sure now that Catra would be safe from harm, nobody had spotted her so far. That night at dinner, as the group enjoyed their rehydrated rations, the mood was light. Without the looming almost-parental figure hanging over them, they could just be a group of thirteen and fourteen year olds camping.

As the moon climbed higher in the sky and the shadows lengthened around them, talked turned to who was cute and who was fooling around with who. Dating didn’t really happen in the Horde, but no matter how repressive your regime, teenagers full of hormones will find a way. Adora found herself blushing as the boys and girls around her talked about who had the best bodies and who had touched who in the showers, she was usually sheltered from this talk. 

Shadow Weaver was careful to keep her isolated enough from the other cadets that she didn’t form close personal attachments. Even the small group that she had grown up with since they were small were kept at a careful distance. She knew that Lonnie, Kyle and Rogelio trusted her and liked her but she lacked the intimate closely that the other three shared. She was thankful that the talk only went so far, they were all still in the early days of having these feelings after all.

Adora was fascinated to hear about kissing, thankful that there were other sin the group as clueless as her who asked what that was. It sounded kind of gross when it was explained, honestly, but the ones who had tried it seemed to like it. All this led to a lot of laughing and ended with the boys all taking of their shirts and flexing their supposed muscles after the girls dared them to. Adora noticed that most of the girls were transfixed to the sight of the topless boys, Lonnie in particular flicking her eyes back and forth between Rogelio and Kyle, of all people. Adora looked but felt nothing, she was just as muscular as any of them and nobody caught her eye. She didn’t want to look at anybody except Catra it seemed. She wasn’t sure what that meant.

As they settled down again, small bunk-room groups huddled closer together, and the tone changed as they began to swap creepy stories. It started off with somebody telling a story about Beast Island and people shrieked and laughed in discomfort as the fire got lower and the glade got darker. Then somebody had a tall, bloody tale about one of the northern princesses. Adora felt her skin prickle and her blood turn icy. This was what she was training for, after all, to stop those monsters. The scary stories continued for long enough that Adora felt herself drifting close to sleep, no longer really hearing what anyone was saying until Kyles croaking voice break through her consciousness.

“…It was as big as me and had these huge claws,” he threw out his arms in emphasis and hit Adora in her shoulder bringing her to full wakefulness, “and its teeth were like fangs!”

“You’re full of it!” A gruff boy from across the fire threw a stick at Kyle, barely missing his head.

“I am not! I was lost in the woods and then this furry cat monster was right there!”

Furry. Cat. Creature.

Adora’s blood pounded in her ears as suddenly everyone was focused on Kyle’s story with wide eyes.

“We should look for that tomorrow!” The same boy was all full of bravado, “imagine how many rations we’ll get if we take that back with us!” There was a chorus of agreements around the fire. 

Adora wanted to stop this, to say it was ridiculous but Kyle and the rest knew that she knew the truth. Instead she jumped to her feet and pronounced that it was time for lights out. She gave the assignments for patrol and with only a little groaning everybody made their ways to the tents. They may be playful kids, but they were still life long soldiers in trains and knew how to follow orders.

_______________

Catra heard Adora long before she saw her, her breath was ragged and her heart beating so frantically that she could hear it through the trees. Knowing that the girl was lone she climbed down for the tree and was waiting for her on the ground, again finding herself enveloped in a hug. The girl’s embrace seemed even more desperate than that which they shared two days ago. Catra purred deep in her chest, trying to sooth the other girl from whatever was making her feel afraid.

“You need to leave,” the words were whispered directly into the large ear, making it twitch as the breath tickled.

Catra pushed her far enough away to look into her eyes with confused ones of her own, “What?”

“Kyle, the boy you helped when I stayed in the cave with you, he just told the others all about you! Now they want to hunt you down and take you back to the Fright Zone like an animal!” Adora’s eyes were glassy now and she was obviously holding back tears.

“Oh,” she’d known that helping the scrawny one was a bad idea when she did it but she had also known how much it mattered to Adora that her friends did well and he had been very upset when she saw him. “I’ll be in the Crystal Castle all day Adora, nobody will see me and we can meet like this tomorrow, nobody ever sees us. It will be fine. I’m a forest thing after all.” This seemed to help abate Adora’s fears as the two of them went back to the river.

Adora was still troubled by the idea of these cadets hunting Catra, even more so of this little story getting around the Horde and groups of soldier’s being sent out to retrieve her. She took solace in the idea that by morning most of the others would have decided Kyle’s story was just that, a story. Fortunately Kyle was known to be a weak link in the whole group, and just as likely to tell a tall story for kudos. She took a deep breath; she would make that happen!

Feeling the tension still filling the girl, Catra pulled her down to their rock until they were seated side by side. She put her arm around the broad shoulders and pulled until Adora was laying on the stone with her head and shoulders on a fury lap, looking at the clear waters. Adora relaxed as sharp nails scratched at the back of her nails. She rubbed her face against the fur under her cheek and felt a lot better.

The two girls sat in silence, taking comfort in each others presence. Adora’s mind drifted to the other conversation around the fire and a blush covered her face. Catra, still mostly looking at the back of the other girls neck saw the shade darken and the skin warm under her touch.

“What’s going on in your head?” Her voice was low, almost blending in with the night sounds.

“Oh…um… over the fire, before Kyle,” she stopped herself not wanting to think about that, “everybody was talking about attraction and kissing and things. It made me feel weird, I guess. I never feel that way.” She sat up to face the cub, though as she looked at her she realised that as they grew up that description didn’t really fit anymore. “Do you?”

“What’s kissing?” Catra’s head was cocked, it was a new word and usually Adora was good at explaining those. 

“I guess it’s when your put your mouth against somebody else’s and kinda smoosh your lips together and sometimes I’ve heard people say that they put their tongue in each others mouths. I think it sounds kinda gross,” even as she said it she felt the strange urge to lean towards Catra.

“Is this mating?” Light Hope had told her about that.

“I guess so?” 

“Light Hope told me that because I am a mutation I won’t mate with anyone. It’s not my purpose.” Her voice was distant and Adora though it sounded sad.

“Do you know what a mutation is Catra?” Adora did, they were told that was what happened if you were sent to the Crimson Waste but Catra was nothing like the things in those horror stories.

“I am something that shouldn’t be that nature made happen any way.” 

Adora was going to ask what this ‘purpose’ Catra mentioned was but became distracted by the far away look in her eyes. Instead she leaned forward to touch foreheads. They sat like that for a while until they moved to lean shoulder to shoulder, falling asleep sitting against the rock.

_____________

The next morning Adora barely made it back to her tent. She had woken wrapped around the warm form of Catra after a surprisingly peaceful nights sleep even though the rock had been hard, she had left her sleeping, knowing that she would wake by dawn. She was just pulling on her uniform when the group responsible for breakfast called that it was ready. She drank a hot drink and chewed a ration bar, reminding Tham that this was their last day to get samples and that they would return home in the morning. 

Nobody mentioned the supposed cat-monster from the night before and she felt reassured that it had been consigned to the tall stories part of their memories. The gear for the day was packed up and Adora’s team were to stay behind to guard the camp and take inventory of any of the larger items that were brought back early. Adora took an opportunity to take Kyle aside and remind him not to bring up the creature again and he stuttered and blushed an apology before joining his team.

________________

Catra woke up alone and strangely disorientated. The day moon was higher in the sky than it should be at dawn and her body felt tired and lethargic as it did when Light Hope would transport her into the Crystal Castle. Maybe that’s where she was? More than once she had been thrown into a situation that looked and felt real only to discover it was something conjured up inside the walls of the mountain. She sniffed the air, tasted it on her tongue and took solace in the reality and authenticity of the smells. 

It was then that voices getting closer made her body tense and fear run through her - she was exposed and Horde cadets were getting closer. She leapt to her feet, feeling clumsy as she pounced over the river, careful not to splash and give her position away. She needed the tree cover and there was nothing over the rocks. 

Hitting the edge of the trees she could smell the sweat and chemicals on the skins of the people approaching and made a big leap into the branches. In her panic she misjudged as she hadn’t since she was a tiny cub still with her parents and rather than grasping a branch her hands closed on nothing but air. She fell back to the ground with a loud exhalation of air and involuntary growl. Springing up again, ignoring the pain radiating from her shoulder she leapt again.

“Did you see that thing!” The voice was loud, scared and excited in equal measure and Catra’s heart fell.

“Lets get it!” Other voices whooped and hollered with anticipation of a hunt. At least they were obviously unschooled in what hunting live prey actually meant, their noise hiding the sounds of her escape.

She ran through the trees, moving as fast as she ever had before.

She had been seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Who is more dangerous for Catra; Light Hope or Shadow Weaver?


	12. Betrayal

Claws dug into tree trunks, force splintering wood sending it flying in all directions as she propelled herself forward. At this point she was flying through the dense foliage, fear and adrenaline pushing her onwards. She barely had a sense of what was in front of her anymore, just knowing that she had to keep moving. She didn’t know if the Horde were still following. Couldn’t take the chance of stopping to listen for her pursuers.

Faster. Faster. Faster. It thrummed through her skin. Burst out of her chest. Her breath was jagged. The exhaustion of days passed catching up to her. Reaching forward, coming out of a tumble, her hand closed around a wide branch. A thunderous crack split the air as the dead wood snapped. She was falling.

Scrabbling hands reached out, clutching at air as she plummeted down and down. A dull thud was the last sound she heard as her head collided with the ground.

Small animals scattered as the body sprawled, form distorted and motionless amount the leaf litter. A dark pool of blood spreading from around her head, dark and thick on the pale leaves. There was stillness all around, like the woods themselves were holding their breath. Time tripled by with no movement from the crumpled form, chest still as stone. Cautiously a rat scuttled towards the broken thing, sniffing at the blood and taking a lick. Liking what it had found it moved to nibble and ear. A terrified screech left its mouth as the body jerker, letter out a small hiss and taking a deep breath. The rat disappeared back into the trees as the cub breathed shallow, ragged breaths.

The woods waited.

______________

The group that came crashing through the tree-line, shouting and waving their arms excitedly caught the attention of all of the other cadets. They had been waiting for these stragglers for close to an hour and Adora had been preparing to call them out on their inability to follow orders. When she saw their faces and the look of elation there, the blood drained from her own and knew what they would say. 

“Report!” She didn’t know how she had managed to squeeze the order through her too dry throat.

“We saw it!” One started but then a cacophony of voices began to stumble over each other.

“There was a cat person…”

“It was huge and so fast.”

“I think it was a kid.”

“Enough!” Torn between her duty to the Horde and her fellow cadets and Catra, Adora couldn’t let things get away from her. She pointed at the large boy who had been so vocal last night, “You! Report what your team saw. The rest of you keep quiet.”

“We saw the cat monster that Kyle told us about last night. It was by a river and then it ran up a tree. We pursued it as far as we could but it was so fast that we couldn’t keep up and we didn’t want to get lost in the woods.” His pride in their discovery was clear. If Adora wasn’t invested in the fate of the ‘monster’ in question she would be proud too. “We should all go back and beat it out!”

“That’s not a decision for you to make cadet.” Rank had it’s privileges and she was going to use it. “We need to head back to the Fright Zone and hand over our finds to Shadow Weaver and file our reports.” Her mind was frantically thinking of ways to lose those reports before they got to her mentor, knowing that there was little hope of that. “She will decide what to do about this creature.”

Temporarily deflated they joined the others at the skiffs as Adora did her last round of checks that everything had been packed back up and that there was no trace that they had been there at all. Could she leave anything to warn her friend? Noticing that the fire pit was still largely in tact, she walked over to break it down, discretely trying to hatch out a warning sign in the ash, hoping that if Catra saw it she would understand the meaning.

“Time to head home.” The sarcastic round of cheers showed how much they had all enjoyed their few days of freedom, a glimpse into their impending adulthood among the Horde.

Skiffs taking to the skies one after the other, Adora watched the trees grow smaller and smaller as they zipped through the air. The further she got from the trees, the deeper the pit in her stomach grew. Nothing good could come of this.

__________________

The Black Garnet chamber was always a chilling place to be, no matter how many times she had walked in. Today it felt more intimidating than ever, she was sure that if she thought about Catra too hard that the imposing stone would be able to read her thoughts. Clutching the reports submitted by the other cadets close to her chest, almost like a shield, Adora waited to be acknowledged by the second in command.

Shadow Weaver made her wait for a handful of minutes before she finally stood straight up from the desk she had been seated at looking through documents, to approach. No matter how favoured the young blond foundling might feel, Shadow Weaver was always sure to keep her in her place, seeking out droplets of praise and affection only to withhold attention and affection the next moment. It made her stronger and compliant to the sorceresses wishes. 

“What do you have for me, Adora?” The slender hand gripped the shelf of papers from her chest and pulled them away, noting how the child’s hands clutched for them after they were gone, as though she wanted to pull them back. Interesting.

“There was a sighting of a creature in the woods close to our camp ground. It was humanoid and had cat features.” Every word felt like she was spitting out razor blades. “Kyle revealed the previous evening that he had seen such a creature when we had to find our way back to camp in our earlier manoeuvres. Nobody believed him, but a group found it close to camp at a stream. They chased it but it was too quick, though they did see the direction it took.” Betrayal tasted like ash in her mouth.

The white eyes of Shadow Weavers mask widen revealing her surprise and pleasure at the news. “And when was this sighting?” The teens had only arrived back a little over an hour ago.

“They saw it around three hours ago.” This was why she demanded that the cadets always debrief her as soon as they returned, if there was something was to be found then time was of the essence.

“Good work, Cadet. You may assign double rations to all of your squadron. Dismissed.”

Shadow Weaver walked away, pressing an intercom button, noting that the blond had dashed out of the room. She had noted the girls discomfort when she had debriefed. It was something that she would have to investigate, Adora was her chosen favourite and she could little afford for her to keep secrets from her commander.

“Octavia, Scorpia, come to the Black Garnet Chamber immediately!” Hearing the quick affirmative she turned to the notes written by the youths. 

Scrawled writing, barely legible in places, told the story of a furred, naked cat walking on two legs. There account stated that it was roughly their height and possessed a tail, large ears and claws. It sounded like something that a child would invent, yet something about it seemed very real to the powerful woman. Maybe this was the thing that she had sensed in the woods those many months ago. She would need to interrogate that weakling, Kyle.

Doors opening drew her attention to the two burly young women who walked in. Newly minted Force Captains, the pair were young and naive enough to still follow her instructions without question. Octavia was a cool, calculating young woman with a layer of spite that worked well to instil fear and obedience in her team. Scorpia was her opposite in almost every way, the towering scorpioni was kind and accommodating to a fault, her rank a privilege of her birth rather than her aptitude and yet, she was loyal to a fault and would follow orders without question. They were a perfect duo to the things that she wanted to keep from Hordak.

“There has been a sighting of an unknown creature in the woods, I want you to go out and retrieve it and return it here. You will bring it directly to me and tell no-one. Here is the report of the last sighting. You both excelled at traversing the woods so I will accept no excuses for failure. Grab a skiff and some rations and head out now. Dismissed.” There was no opportunity to question the older woman as she thrust the papers into their hands and threw them out of the room.

Outside the doors the two young women shared a questioning look, before marching purposefully to the hanger bay and headed out into the fading daylight.

________________

Octavia, self appointed brains of their duo, hovered the skiff low over the stream mentioned in the report. Scorpia looked terrified that any moment a tree would reach out and snatch them from the air and clung so tightly onto the rail of the skiff that it bent under the force of her pincers. The fish woman had reminded her several times already that they often hovered skiffs far further into the woods when they dropped the cadets for their solo missions. She knew how far she could go before the terrifying power of the woods would assert itself.

“So, the kids said they first saw it here and then they pursued it southwest for about fifteen minutes before it bore east and they lost it after another twenty minutes.” A webbed finger tapped at her chin as she thought. “Scorpia, I’m going down there. You follow me for the time they said and then we’ll see what we get from there.” She didn’t wait for a reply before she jumped down from the skiff, landing in a roll on the ground. Scorpia leapt to grab the controls before it could fly off course.

Octavia began to run, timer set on her chronometer. Watching the trees pass by she started to notice the tell tale signs of a pursuit. Branches were broken and leaves on the ground disturbed. She yelled when it was time to change course and Scorpia skilfully kept the vehicle close. Coming to the end of the cadet’s description Octavia found herself stood among denser trees, she looked up and scanned the canopy, squinting as she notices deep gouges on branches and leaves that had been left ragged. There had certainly been something up there.

“Scorpia, throw me a flashlight. Go higher so you can get a better view and keep eyes on me, I think I can track this thing.”

An hour passed as Octavia studied the trees, noting how the gouges grew deeper, the destruction above her head increasing as though the creature they chased had been running for its life. Truthfully, the cadets would have captured it but a dumb animal wasn’t to know that.

“There’s a small clearing ahead!” Scorpia’s voice boomed down from above.

Octavia burst into the clearing, shining her flashlight in the twilight, grateful that Scorpia had turned the floodlight of the skiff onto her earlier. She stumbled out of the forested area so fast that she almost tripped over the crumpled, still form on the ground. Its fur was congealed with blood and it wasn’t moving. 

“Get down here!” Unlike the scorpion woman Octavia used the communicator on her uniform.

There was barely enough room to land the skiff but Scorpia managed it. She clambered down and moved to look down at their prey.

“Hey, it’s a kitty!” Octavia rolled her eyes as hearts filled her partners.

“We need to get it back right now. I think it’s dead.” She’d nudged it a couple of times with her toe and it hadn’t stirred. 

Scorpia bent down and scooped the much smaller body into her arms, careful that the head was cradled against a broad shoulder so that it wouldn’t loll and cause more damage. Both members of the Horde were startled by the pained, barely audible moan that escaped the blood coated face. There was still hope yet that Shadow Weaver would not reprimand them.

“I’ll drive, you keep a hold of that thing.” Octavia wasn’t about to get blood all over her uniform.

____________

Pounding filled her head, enveloping her in searing agony. She couldn’t feel anything but cold penetrating her body from below and the throbbing of pain everywhere. Where were the smells of the woods? She managed to twitch her hand, flattening it against the cool surface beneath her. Metal, not leaves met her touch.

“Light Hope?” Was what she tried to say, it came out more like a growl. It did not echo. This was not the Crystal Castle.

As her mind cleared around the pain, she could feel something tight around her wrists and ankles, chaffing against her fur. It was a sensation unlike anything she had ever felt before. Taking the risk, she rolled onto her side, feeling something pulling at her right arm from where it was anchored to her wrist. A blue eye cracked open, expecting to be hit with bright light but instead found herself surrounded by dull green and brown.

Already tiring from the small movement, her eye flickered closed as she began to lose the fight to stay away. Before she blacked out again, the familiar smell of metal and smoke soothed her as she was reminded of Adora.


	13. Awake

Wakefulness come slowly, hazy and pain laced. Her body was heavy, disconnected from her mind. The weight on her wrists and ankles remained, holding her down so that the haze in her head didn’t make her float away again. The full integration of her mind and body came slowly but eventually she was whole again, squirming in discomfort as her head pounded, vision still blurred.

The darkness of the room cast shadows around the corners, only the small pool of light where she lay clearly visible. In one corner she caught sight of movement, a small twitch, possibly a trick of her mind. She tried to shake her head to better clear her vision but only succeeded in making the drum beat behind her eyes intensify until she had to close them against the pain. Distant rustling from the corner made her ear twitch, swivelling to catch every sound. Focusing in a way that her eyes still could not.

Struggling, fear throbbing through her skin, the cub tried to move her body into a tighter ball to protect herself from this intruder, blinking to try to see what was there. Fuzzy shadows began to solidify into a tall, slender figure towering over her. Long robes moved with the body, familiar and comforting. 

This must be a test. Light Hope had been pushing her more and more lately, heading towards some deadline that the youth could not understand. It was why she had been so exhausted that she would sleep out in the open until her near capture. She remembered falling, hitting her head and then nothing until she had first woken here. She must have been closer to home than she had thought and crawled her way into the cave. Light Hope transporting her into a part of the Crystal Castle that she was unfamiliar with. Maybe the darkness would help her brain to heal better? That she could smell the oily, unnatural smell tat always clung to her human friend was surely just her mind playing tricks on her.

The tall figure stayed silhouetted, making seeing her features all but impossible. Catra needed to know what to do, should she stay laying on the floor or was this a test to see how well she could deal with pain and confinement; another way to prove that she was worthy of being the guardian of the sword and the protector of the young woman who would weald it.

“Light Hope?” Her voice came out cracked and broken, cutting at her throat like blades.

The body twitched for a moment, the glitch that often accompanied the woman made of light allowing the child to relax the tension coiled in her. Though she could not fully see the pixels break and reform, the jerk of the frame reassured her. It did not move closer and no words were spoken. A test of her ability to solve a problem while injured then. Not the first, but certainly the most damaged she had been in a simulation like this. The Crystal Castle was a wonder of illusions which could delight but also terrify and things that could hurt you if you did not take care.

“What do I do?” She could barely hear her own voice it was so weak.

She thought that’s he saw the head shake, a hand wave through the air in a gentle motion, displacing the shadows that seemed to crawl closer to her, the light dimming around the edges. Her eyes began to feel heavier, the darkness blunting the edges of her vision. As her head lolled, unconscious carrying her away again, she thought she heard a female voice say something that she could not make out.

As the beast feinted again, Shadow Weaver walked out of the darkness of the corner, her shadow minions retreating back under her skirts. When it had opened its mouth and words emerged she had been shocked, until now the things that Scorpia and Octavia had brought in from the woods looked like nothing more than a large animal. When she had heard the word ‘Light’ spill from its lip she had tensed, had this forest child known her true name? She had strained her ears for the whispered words. Not ‘Light Spinner’ but ‘Light Hope’ had been the name that it had breathed out. Excitement had pulsed down the sorceresses spine, there was something out there in the woods. Something that commanded this animal.

She crouched down at the side of the furry, naked body. It was covered in mud and twigs, blood matting the mane into clumps. The smell that wafted from it made her nose wrinkle beneath her mask. It smelt musty and dirty, like the distillation of those damn woods. Now that it was clear that the creature would not die, she reached out her power, searching for that trace of magic that was a mirror to Adora’s own. There was nothing but the faintest of traces. Whatever this thing was, it was a link to greater power but not the source.

Realising that if it were to be of any use, she would have to have its wounds dealt with and then interrogate it thoroughly before she disposed of it. It may not be magical but it could still be of use to her.

She stood back to her full height, nudging the body with her toe. Filthy beast. Her robes flew around her as she turned from the cell and stepped out onto the empty gantry. She pressed her hand to the control panel and the forcefield sealed the room. She pressed a series of keys and the field changed from sickly green to black, concealing the contents from prying eyes.

Feet echoing hollowly on the metal surface she walked away with purpose. Somebody had known this thing was out there and she wanted to know why he had not told her.

____________

Red robes whirled as the woman moved about her sanctuary. A turned burred out of her lips, nonsensical yet melodic as she swirled the broom through the dust that perpetually coated the floor of the small cottage. Time ebbed and flowed around her, now turning to then, yesterday to tomorrow and back again. Razz and her cottage were a constant, a rock in the stream forever the same as everything flowed around her. She could put out her hand and stem the tide, being in the moment and then jumping to another. Mara was Adora, Adora was Mara; the Wildling was a child, Catra was an angry young woman. 

Razz was a forever thing, untouched by the time that she moved through, set in amber since the woods took their first breath. She had seen life and times pass her by, the birth of peoples and the death of them, invasions and conquests and the world made fire. Some of it and happened and some was to come. Not every moment she lived come to pass, changes and choices a butterfly wing turning to a tsunami that made small surprises in the world around her. Mara had been a butterfly, so it seemed. Catra too.

Ancient eyes looked out of the window, this was a Wildling day. She would be small today but not a child, not yet grown either. She would slip into the cottage wearing the tunic that was hers, would twine around the old being and make jokes in the voice that had changed. She spoke like Mara and Adora now, no longer like Razz or herself. Something had changed, the cub visiting less and less as she altered. Standing taller, walking with more purpose and speaking in that new cadence. 

Razz had tried not to fear the changes, had seen them coming. Knew that Light Hope would not keep her glitchy fingers off of the creature she had made for long. The Wildling had a part to play in the chess game that was the fight for the soul of Etheria. There had been other ways that she had been deployed in other times, but here and now Razz had hoped that the child would have more time.

Hours passed and the Wildling never came.

The ancient figure dashed out of the cottage, moving at the inhuman pace that she was able to achieve despite the aged and wizened appearance of her form. She weaved though trees with practiced ease and over rock with the temerity of a mountain goat. Soon she was looking at the clearing that housed the Wildling’s home. The tiny cave dwarfed by the monolith that had always overshadowed it. Sadness coursed through her, the cub had never stood a chance. Razz could have taken her away, of course, but destiny would always catch up with her.

Razz approached the shining beacon at the heart of the glade and raised her arms high, walking stick aloft. She called out, saying the words that only she remembered after a thousand years. As if from nowhere a door appeared and she walked in, purposeful in every step. She did not stop until she reached a chamber that she had seen many times when she was a companion to Mara, another young woman doomed by fate and Razz’s own impotence to do more than guide little by little.

“What have you done with her?” Razz’s voice echoed around the chamber as the image of LIght Hope materialised before her. The ever serene face looking down at her.

“I have done nothing. The Guardian of the Sword must be close to the one who will weald it. The time had come. I did not put her in the way of those who would take her in, they found their way to her through their own machinations. Now she will have to rely on what she has learned over a lifetime. When the time is right she will return to us with the chosen one and Etheria will be freed.” The words were cold and calculated, the life that had once infused them as she spoke with Mara long erased from her programming.

“You and your people are monsters!” Razz swung her stick uselessly at the hologram that glitched but otherwise gave no reaction. “What if they kill her? She is but a child, how is she to hold out against their brutality?” 

“She was made to withstand pain. I made her for this. I know you have seen what is to come. Everything will happened as it must.” With those words the projection winked out of existence, leaving Razz frustrated and alone.

She left the Crystal Castle with far less fanfare than she had entered. Slowly trudging back to her home timelines began to swirl around her, a girl running out in front of her, laughing. Razz’s solemn face broke into a matching smile.

“Wait, Mara dear, I shall show you where the best berries are.” 

______________

Kyle quivered, every part of him covered in gooseflesh. His knees had locked to keep him standing, but his body swayed gently. He kept his hands linked together behind his back, owing that he dare not break his stance at attention. He had only been called into this office twice before, both when he had made a mistake that Shadow Weaver found egregious enough to deal with herself. 

Kyle knew he was a screwup, less capable than his friends. If they ran, he stumbled. If they climbed he fell. All he was good at was making problems. He was surprised that Rogelio, Lonnie and Adora still spoke to him. He knew he was lucky that they were his team, if it was anyone else he would have been bullied mercilessly. Not that Lonnie didn’t get short with him, or that Adora didn’t chastise him. But at the end of the day they were always there to bandage up his scrapes, tousle his unruly hair and say goodnight in the bunk room. He knew, that if he got hurt, Rogelio would scoop him up in his strong, scaly arms and carry him to safety. The instructors often reprimanded him, but considering him a lost cause seldom saw reason to pass him up the chain of command.

The first time he had been sent to Shadow Weaver he had been ten and he had broken a piece of sensitive equipment that she should never have touched. She had slapped his face and shouted at him, took away his rations fo the week. It hadn’t been much different to what his trainers would do. The second time had been six months ago when he had almost broken Adora’s arm, grabbing her as he fell, leaving her with a sprain and unable to train for two weeks. They all knew that Adora was ‘The One’, the next big thing in the Horde, and he had known his error as soon as he made it. That time Shadow Weaver had let her magic flow out of the Black Garnet and crackle at his skin, making the hairs on his arms singed. It had hurt and he had cried like a baby. The shame had been far greater deterrent than the pain. Now he was fourteen and he had kept a secret. He knew that was why he was here.

It felt like he had been waiting in the room for hours, and truthfully he might have been. The waiting only amplified his anxiety. If anything mad a loud noise right now he would jump out of his skin. He needn’t have feared a loud noise however, as the doors that had stood open behind him suddenly closed with a hiss, and Shadow Weaver oozed into the room, her presence wrapping around him like water. He was drowning in her presence.

“Cadet, you’ve been keeping something from me.” Her voice was honey, sweet and soft and more terrifying than any shout could possibly be.

“I don’t know what you mean, Shadow Weaver.” His voice cracked, making a lie of his words.

“You did not get back to your team in record time during the exercises, did you Cadet? You were brought back by a woodland creature. You had to be saved by an animal.” Oh. That.

“I am so sorry Shadow Weaver. I told Adora and my team about it when we got back. Adora told me not to worry about it, that we had used all of the resources at our disposal. I thought that it was what we were supposed to do,” the white eyes squinted and he knew he was in big trouble.

“You told all of the cadet’s on your most recent field exercise about it, I hear, and yet you did not think to write it down in a report and submit t to me?” The voice had become lower, almost a hiss now. The power behind the words making him even more afraid.

“I am so sorry. I just wanted everybody to like me. We were telling scary stories. I didn’t know it was so important.” He was whining now, words tumbling out childishly.

“You will describe, in detail, everything that you remember from your encounter.” She had stalked towards him, standing toe to toe with him now, forcing him to crane his head back to meet her masked eyes. He could feel the unsettling chill that emanated from her body seeping into him even as shadows surrounded him.

Kyle whimpered and felt wetness pool below his waist as he lost control of his bladder. Shadow Weaver hissed in horror and stepped back.

“Pathetic!” There was no sympathy in her words, only flint. “Now, tell me all you remember.” 

_______________

Scorpia gingerly walked down the metal corridor, heavy footfall making far more noise than she would like but her bulk and lack of grace making it impossible for her to do anything else. She remembered her mothers, both tall like her but willowy and delicate, something that she had not been since she was a little girl. Since they had been separated. When her parents went away, Scorpia had dedicated herself to the Horde. No one else had come to take her away, none of the other royal courts had reached out to the lost little girl. Only the Horde had reached out, borne her into the embrace of the people who had taken over her families kingdom. Over time she had come to learn that the other princesses would never have accepted her. Her lack of grace, her claws and carapace made her too different. That and the fact that even her rune stone rejected her. She was dedicated to the Horde because they were the only family that stayed.

Soon she was at the entrance to one of the cells, the black forcefield hiding the small body within. Shadow Weaver had chosen her for this. In her pincers she held a simple cadets uniform, more red than white, signalling that this was no ordinary child inside. Shadow Weaver knew that she would follow orders without question, would give everything for the cause, even if her soul was tender. It was why she was already a well liked Force Captain, what she lacked in smarts she made up for with heart.

With difficulty she punched in the access code and the shield went down, allowing the light of the hallway to spill into the cell. Even so it was still dingy within and the scorpioni pushed a few more keys until the lights within intensified. She looked around, expecting the little creature to still be curled up on the floor in the centre of the room as she had been when she deposited her there (and when she had snuck a peek at her the day before, just to see) but she was not there. She followed the lines of the glowing shackles until she saw the little body cowering in the darkest corner at the end of the bed.

A pair of luminous eyes caught the light, shining blue and yellow. It was an unusual sight and just added to the mystery of this naked little thing. Scorpia hadn’t been wrong when she called the bloody ball they found ‘Kitty’, awake it was even more apparent that this was a cat person but like none she had ever seen before in the Horde. The furry ears were constantly in motion, the fur on the body dense but short. As she carefully approached, putting the bundle in her arms on the bed so that she could put her claws in the air in an effort to show she meant no harm she saw the little one push itself further into the corner, hands swiping at her with some wicked looking claws unsheathed. She had not seen those when she had carried her to and from the skiff.

“Shhh. It’s ok. I’m not here to hurt you,” Scorpia knew that her voice could boom so she took extra care to keep it as soft and gentle as she could. “I’m just going to sit here and maybe you could come see me?” She lowered herself to the floor and crossed her legs, resting her claws on them. She didn’t even know if it understood what she was saying.

Scorpia was surprisingly patient. People looked at her and assumed she stupid and loud, clumsy even. Truthfully she was more clumsy than most, her big claws making it hard for her to carry out the finer skills but she was used to being overlooked and left alone. It had made her used to sitting quietly. So she stayed there, on the cool floor and waited like she would have for any injured little animal.

It took time, but eventually the young thing crawled stiffly out, stretching her body that must have gone stiff after so long. It stayed low to the ground, and looked at the bigger woman appraisingly. Scorpia didn’t more, even when it got closer with those vicious looking claws unsheathed, just looked back with a soft smile on her face.

The cub had watched the person that had walked in and sat on the floor. She was much bigger than the kitten and her claws looked like they could inflict a lot of damage, but she never approached the girls hiding spot. Her words had been soft, her voice pleasant and friendly, almost reminding Catra of Adora. The girl was still in pain from the wounds of her fall, but her head had cleared enough that she could piece together what was going on around her. She just had one thing she needed to test. Catra reached out and tapped at the red shell of the one in front of her. Her finger made a tinkling sound as it made contact and the bottom fell of her world. This was not a projection. She was not in the Crystal Castle. This person was real, as flesh and blood as she was. A part of her mind recognised that she had seen this person before.

After tapping at her carapace the feral thing rocked back on its heals with an expression equal parts fear and sadness. Scorpia had had to fight the urge to flinch when that claw had come towards her own, but there had been no malicious intent behind it. She continued to wait for the other to make a move.

“Where?” Hearing it speak was a surprise, the voice was scratchy from thirst and lack of use but the words were clear.

“You don’t need to worry, this is the Fright Zone. I found you out in the woods, you were hurt but we brought you back.” Slowly she pointed at the bundle on the bed. “I’ve brought you some clothes. Do you know what those are?” Because the kid was naked so she might not.

“I know what clothes are.” Tears stung Catra’s eyes as she thought about Razz and the soft flannel of the robe she wore with her. Would she notice that she was gone? Would she worry? “I’m in the Fright Zone?” That was Adora’s place, maybe she could find her and be safe.

“Yes, this is the Fright Zone. I’m Force Captain Scorpia, you can call me just Scorpia as you’re not a cadet yet. I’m here to take you to the showers and get you cleaned up. The medics patched your head when you got here. Do you want to come for a shower?” The words, once set free spilled out of the white haired woman in torrent.

“I don’t know what a shower is.” It wasn’t a word Adora had taught her.

“It’s a way to wash your body to be clear. The water comes from above, I guess it’s kinda like rain?” She hoped that the child would understand. From the look of them, they were no more than 11 or 12, small slight, but seemed bright enough.

“That sounds fine. I would like to be clean.” She would like to get out of this room and learn her surroundings. As nice as this woman was, it didn’t sound like they intended to return her to the woods.

Scorpia groaned as she got to her feet, lumbering over and carefully reaching down to the child and unlocking the cuffs at her wrists and ankles. She was careful not to seem intimidating, though the forest creature had done nothing to seem like she would lash out. She just seemed small and a little afraid. Scorpia picked up the pile of clothes and towels and walked out of the cell.

“Come on then…” She realised that she did not know what to call them. “Do you have a name?”

“Catra.” There was no point not to tell the woman who looked down at her.

“Come on then Catra.”

The unlikely pair made their way along the halls, the prison block was scarcely used and the guards were sparse, encountering nobody as they moved to the showers for the block. The Horde may be a cold place to live, but prisons were kept fed and clean. They walked in and Scorpia showed Catra how to turn on the shower and what the soap was for before retreating to stand outside and wait. She would take her to Shadow Weaver once she was clean. Maybe the second in command would ask her to take the kid to the mess hall after she debriefed her. Scorpia liked to be useful.

______________

Suffocating. That was how Catra felt as she stood at the centre of a room that was dominated by a big black rock. The fabric against her skin was tight and constricting. The material was slick and stretchy, making her fur itch and stretching across her chest and her shoulders constricting her body in a way she had never known. The tunic that Razz kept for her was loose and soft, it felt like comfort and love. There was no love in this cloth.

Under the shirt and the shorts her fur itched against her skin but everywhere else her fur stood on end, reacting to the strange charge in the air. It felt like ants crawling all over her. It had been a faint charge when she walked into the room but grew more intense as she had moved deeper into the room. The door had shut behind her but the scorpion woman had stayed outside to play sentry. The only place the buzz could be coming from was the stone. She tried to take a step back towards the door and was suddenly gripped in the clutches of a red fire that raced over her body and held her taught. She whined as she felt her feet lifted from the floor and her body moved closer to the rock. The crackling lightening pulled at her but was more numbing than painful.

Catra’s body was immobilised, not her own. She tried to move her head to get a glance at who was doing this to her, but her head was as stuck as the rest of her. She was able to moved her eyes, catching a glimpse of the tall shadowed figure she had seen in the cell. Now that she knew it wasn’t Light Hope, she could easily tell. The child chastised herself for being so easily fooled. What sort of guardian would she be?

This new presence that held her hostage in the air was clothed all in red, face obscured by a black and red marks, white souls eyes squinting as they appraised the girl in her power. Her robes seemed to have a life of their own as they moved around her body. As she moved closer Catra realised that she was not walking but levitating. It was all strangely reminiscence for the being made of light who had been training her, the cool exterior, the gliding motion and the lack of expression. Except for the red and black instead of the cool blues she could have been home.

“What have we here?” A long fingered hand reached out and cupped her chin, fingers digging in as she forced her head this way and that. There were too many sensations running through the child, the crackling energy, the buzz from the tone, the clothes the touch and the lingering pain in her head, it was all too much and her almost empty stomach rebelled. Bile burst out of her mouth and onto the hand touching her chin.

The woman reared back as if burned. Even with the mask covering her face the disgust and horror was evident. Then that same hand was back, this time with enough force to send her head flying back as it connected with her check. Catra could taste blood in her mouth where one of her fangs had sliced into the tender flesh. She felt it creep out of the edge of her mouth and start to run through her fur.

“Filthy animal! When I think of all of the effort I have put into finding you, and for what? You are nothing but a disgusting animal, no power at all.” Catra trembled as the woman seemed as though she would lash out again, only to come close and intimidate her captive. Both her hands came up and wrapped around the Childs head, moving it speculatively from side to side.

“There is something in here. You had enough residue of power on you that I felt it through a screen,” it was obvious that she was talking to herself. “You know where I can find it. Now I just need you to talk.”

Catra grit her teeth. So this was a test, it might not have been one set by Light Hope, but there had been enough simulations in the Crystal Castle for her to know that she could never tell anyone about the sword or the monolith. She was the guardian. When the time was right she would bring Adora to her destiny. Until then she would suffer whatever fate held in store to protect her duty.

The electricity around her body was no longer numbing as the light began to crackle and excruciating pain raced through her body, making her write and twist in the air.   
______________

Adora wondered down the corridor, making good time on her way to this afternoon’s training simulation. She had just aced another written exam and been given effusive praise from the proctor. He had reassured her that she was on target to be the youngest Force Captain in the Horde if she kept this up in all her classes. Adora wasn’t arrogant but she thrived on praise and only ever wanted to please the adults around her. 

Her day had been good and, since their return and her debrief with Shadow Weaver she had felt reassured that her friend was safe. None of the other teen s had known where she went and Adora had monitored the comings and goings of the regiments as best she could, and it looked like nobody had been sent to hunt for her in the following days. Knowing that her friend was safe and she was excelling lifted her spirits. 

As she moved passed Shadow Weavers room, she was curious to see that Force Captain Scorpia was standing outside as though she was guarding the room. The fact that there was a guard on the room was not unusual. When Shadow Weaver was using her magic or interrogating a prisoner there would often be extra security. It was usually an armour clad grunt, face hidden behind their helmet and not a Force Captain, though.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she walked closer to the woman who stood at attention by the door, “Hello Force Captain.”

Scorpia looked at the young blond who had walked up to her. She knew Adora, remembered taking her out for her training exercises a while ago and her name was always buzzing around in the barracks and among the other Force Captains and trainers. Undoubtedly she was a good cadet, was likely to make waves as she got older, but there was something about her that Scorpia just didn’t like. She wasn’t sure if it was the hair poof she’d started to wear for the self assured way she wondered around as though she owned the place. Scorpia liked just about everyone, but Adora was certainly near the bottom of her list.

“Hello Cadet.”

Adora scratched her head, unsure how she could find out what was going on behind the closed doors. It didn’t seem like the usually chatty scorpioni was in the mood and the blond realised that she would need thistle not to be late to training. She opened her mouth to say something else, when a muffled scream from within filtered through the heavy doors.

Oh. Her questions were answered by that, they must have caught another spy from the princesses. Shadow Weaver was chief interrogator after all.

“Aren’t you going to be late, Cadet?” Scorpia wanted her gone, nobody was supposed to know about the forest creature yet.

“Yes, sorry Force Captain. Have a good day.” Adora threw the taller woman a salute and hustled back towards her training, never knowing how close she was to her friend.


	14. The Box

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got caught up in the world of another fic and Wild took a back seat but I'm back with a slightly longer update!

Being surrounded by trees was usually something that she felt comforted by, it meant that she would soon be seeing Catra and living that little bit of a secret life that they shared. Today it just felt like a trap. She was surrounded by the roaches excitement of the teams of cadets who were now under her temporary command. Their desire to hunt the creature that had been spotted last time was a living thing than ran through them all, a buzz of electric in their skin. For her it was just fear. A weight in the pit of her stomach.

This mission was only two days and essentially battle training in a real world scenario, bots deployed into the fringes of the woods to act as they enemy as they moved out in teams and practiced battle formations. It was a far cry from controlled and regulated conditions within the simulators in the Fright Zone. The bots were the least of the hazards that they would face.

The itinerary for the groups was tight, almost every waking moment accounted for the next forty-eight hours. They would be exhausted at night, falling into their bedrolls without the energy for campfire fun this time round. In a lot of ways it left Adora able to take a breath, there was no time for over eager youths to run int o the woods looking for the cat-girl who was fast becoming a fable told among the cadets. In others it meant that she too would be too tired and pressured to go looking for Catra if she didn’t come to their spot. 

The first morning of training went flawlessly, the teams working well and communicating with skill, trained from infancy to work as units they were seldom outclassed. They were allowed a break for lunch and a debrief over rations, where Adora decided to shuffle the teams to up the intensity of the mission. With half her mind on Catra, the other half was still focused on the prize of becoming Force Captain. She was fast approaching her fifteenth birthday which meant that promotion was only a little over a year away. She had to make it.

With their new teams feeling each other out she shouldn’t have been surprised hours later when the air was rent with the howling screams of a teen in trouble. Hustling her own group and calling in back-up from a third they found their way to a group, surprisingly not containing Kyle, who had lost a member down a man-trap. Thankfully it had a smooth floor, no spears to kill the falling victim. Less good was the unnatural angle that the boy’s leg had been twisted into and the blood on his face.

Adora wasted no time in barking orders to get the other members of his group to take stock and calm down while fashioning a harness and climbing down do retrieve the older boy. When she got to the bottom of the hole she wasn’t surprised to see the walls were littered with tiny tiny score marks. This was obviously a hole that Catra had made, probably over weeks given the size of it. She let herself wonder why and when her friend would have done this; was this a part of what she was learning with Light Hope? Focusing on the task at hand she was pleased to see that the cadet was conscious and claimed that he had not passed out at all. She fastened the rope harness around him, apologising as she watched his eyes fill with tears and a tight scream leave his lips. Soon, with the help of Rogelio’s now ridiculously over developed upper body, they had his hoisted up, her clambering out behind. She was thankful to see that Lonnie, ever level headed, had cobbled together and stretcher from tree limbs and vines. It would do the job to get him back to the camp site. 

Thankfully they were close to the edge of the woods. The boy was loaded onto a skiff and the rest of his team, traumatised from seeing their teammate injured, joined him to pilot it back to the Fright Zone where medics had been alerted to be on standby. The day moon was starting to fade by then and Adora made the command decision to call it quits for the day. She presided over a sombre evening meal and there was no push-back when she ordered everybody to their tents for an early night so that they could get back to it bright and early. 

One of the privileges of being the commander of the cadet teams was that Adora got her own tiny one man tent. She could come and go as she pleased as long as she was discrete and hid in the shadows. It felt like forever, waiting for the full weight of night to fall and allow her to sneak out. The youth on patrol duty at this end of the clearing was already dozing, making life even easier for her. No citation for her.

Finally it felt like she could take a deep breath as she waited in their spot, looking around at the trees for any sign of the feline up in the canopy. A rustle caught her attention and she looked up, only to see a squirrel scamper away. She sat on a mossy mound to wait, she wasn’t sure but she thought she would be willing to wait forever if It meant knowing that the other girl was all right.

The feeling of moss against her cheek roused Adora who grunted inelegantly and righted herself, realising that she must had fallen asleep and slumped against the mossy surface of a nearby tree. It was much darker now, the empty sky hanging oppressively overhead. 

Catra was not showing up tonight, it was a stark realisation and she cast plaintive blue eyes back up to the trees, hoping for a glimpse but knowing she wouldn’t get one. Dejectedly, shoulders slumped, she crept her way back to her tent. All she could hope for was that out there, deep in the heart of the woods, Catra was curled up in the Crystal Castle after a rigorous day of training. Maybe next time she would be able to go in search of her, or her laughing mismatched eyes would peer down from a tree. There was no need to worry.

Not yet.   
_________________

Everything was numb. She had never felt so disconnected from her own body before. It was as though she was floating outside of herself, a witness to what was happening to her but not a participant. In some ways she was grateful, the pain of the first few days in this nightmare place had shattered into a million, tiny, Catra shaped pieces. The red lighting, the constriction and the suffocation combined in an almost deadly cocktail but this monstrous woman who always prowled the edges of her consciousness would not let her die. When the witch became frustrated with the lack of results from her magic she would resort to her fists or a lash. That pain, while no less excruciating, was familiar and grounding. It was like falling from a tree or hitting a rock.

The punishment, as her hazy brain had been able to decipher, was for her lack of answers. Light Hope had warned her that people would want to steal the power of the Sword for themselves, that she was its guardian and must stay resolute and strong against anyone who tried to take it. When the time was right she would know, and it would be time to take Adora to the weapon. But that time was not now and this woman was certainly not Adora.

As another blow landed against the side of her body, tearing fur and flesh, leaving blood trickling along her ribs and maybe more sever damage beneath, she allowed her mind to drift. Far away from here and now and into the Crystal Castle. It felt as though she were there, standing in the vestibule and looking up and the benevolently blank face of her guide. Light Hope stared down at her, brow quirked, as though examining her broken physical state, for as she looked down at herself, in her delirious daydream, she was still dressed in the stained Horde cadet uniform that hung on her emaciated form. Should she feel so judged in her own mind?

“You are holding out against an onslaught of great magnitude, little protector. I knew this would come,” if she knew why hadn’t she stopped it? Catra’s mind whirled but the words continues and she foggily tried to concentrate. “I placed this in your mind as a failsafe. You will not give the sword away until the time is right. Everything you are is safe from this torture. Be not afraid, simply trust in me and your destiny!” 

The words faded out on a scream that was ripped from her own throat as another hit in the same place audibly snapped a rib and sent a torrent of blood oozing down from her body to coat the steel table and drip, drip, drip onto the floor.

_________________

Glass shattered as it collided with the wall. The accompanying scream of frustrated anger echoing off the wall as the red liquid spilled down the wall to pool on the floor. It looked like fresh spilled blood and Shadow Weaver narrowed her eyes beneath her mask, a predatory smile curving her lips, as she turned them to face the girl strapped to the metal table. The axis that all of her thwarted ambitions revolved around. She had been the sorceresses captive for almost half a year and was still to spill the secrets of the Whispering Woods. She was surprisingly resilient, holding out against all manner of physical tortures.

Shadow Weaver had started slowly, not with kindness, the thing was too base for her to feign that, but with lashes and shouted words. When this had failed to even get a name from the little beast, she had brought out her magic. Drawing out thick ropes of energy and casting it around the girl in red, blistering tendrils which scorched her and made the room fill with the stench of burning fur for days after. Still nothing.

It wasn’t that the girl would show no response to pain. Far from it. She would cry and scream, body thrashing and spasming against her restraints. She would whimper and occasionally, on her most successful days, she would pull a word or two from that fanged mouth. Never anything of use, perhaps even nonsense. More likes names, Hope and Razz, something about a castle. It was entirely possible that she had broken the girl too far but she wasn’t to be denied, if the girl broke? Shattered like the glass against the wall? Who would care, she was a thing that stank of wrongness to her sensitive magic, if she died the incinerator would be waiting.

The older woman was loath to enter the things mind, it was bound to be wild and chaotic, but she was left with no choice after so long. She had other work to do as second in command, it wouldn’t do to be derelict in her duties. 

Where was that magic? It had been so strong through the monitor all those months ago and now this little husk of a thing was as mundane and powerless as could be.

Today had started off poorly, the monster had enough fight still left in her malnourished and withered shell, that she had snapped at the older woman’s fingers and spat at her. In response, she had smacked the child in the head, catching her temple and plunging the girl into unconsciousness when she was needed awake. That had led to the unfortunate demise of her wine.

Groaning from the slab called her back over to her subject, who’s eyes were fluttering, fighting to open and reveal the vile sight of their oddness. That’s all she needed, it was always better to delve into somebodies mind while they were awake; unconscious minds were a surreal place of images and ideas that could not be trusted. She needed to know whatever she was able to pull out would be realm she was a truth seeker after all, though she may be an expert equivocator herself.

She placed her hands on either side of the furred head, resisting the urge to pull them away in disgust at the feeling of the coarse, matted fur beneath them. She channelled the magic out of the Black Garnet and focused her own mind outwards, almost leaving her own body and moving forward through the connection of fur and flash and into the vessel below her.

It was always a startling transition, moving into another mind, going from the cool and calculated realm of her own psyche into the often chaotic once of another. It was a skill she had honed even before arriving at the Fright Zone. It was one of the skills taught to only the most powerful and trusted of those who dwelt in Mysticore, intended to help rehabilitate the minds of victims of coma or trauma. Of course, anything designed to heal could easily be made to harm. She was an expert at that.

Moving into the kitten was different, usually there was a garage of colours as she moved through memories and ideas, a cacophony of noises and images. It was a mire of distractions to wade through or eradicate in order to get to your purpose, more often than not to pull out information or eradicate memories, planting her own in their wake. It was a most useful tool to use on the tepid spies sent by the Rebellion, filling their heads with misinformation and sending them back from whence they came. The teens head was blank.

No, not blank, it was like a pitch dark void. There was no colour or sound as she entered, nothing to let her know that she wasn’t in the mind of a corpse. If she hadn’t seen the eyes blink open, she would doubt it wasn’t. Moving forward through the connecting, pushing the rune-stone harder she filled the blackness with glowing red and moved deeper and deeper until she caught a glimpse of a soft blue light which grew brighter until it consumed everything the further she went. 

She found herself standing over a box, almost coffin like in aspect, covered in unfamiliar sigils which glowed constantly. The light was soft but pierced through the woman, making her stagger back, pulling away towards her own body. She was nothing it not resolute, and held firm, pushing her own magic forward to meet it. 

The more she looked at the object the more she realised that it was seamless, no lock or key, no hinge or seam. This was where everything that she needed to know was held. Somebody had already walked the halls of this animals mind and built a fortress. It was proof positive that it contained secrets. Secrets she wanted to mine.

Shadow Weaver reached out an incorporeal hand to touch the box, only to find herself crashing to the floor of her lair, cast out of the child’s mind with unceremonious ease. 

Well then, this was progress. 

_________________

Adora’s second trip to the woods after Catra’s sighting was more eventful. It was back to her small squad, a repeat of their wilderness training. Once again they were dropped into the heart of the woods with their equipment and they were to make their way back to a rendezvous point - this time further towards the Fright Zone itself, meaning not only did they need to get through the woods but that they also needed to survive terrain even more inhospitable. They were all a lot more confident this time, even Kyle seemed more self assured than before. For Adora it meant that she would be able to sneak away to the cave and look for her friend, hopefully finding her there. She knew the woods well enough by now, and they knew her, so getting back in time was not a concern.

As each was set down, they waved excitedly and disappeared into the trees. This time the weather was warm and fine making for a much more fun experience sans the rain. Adora was able to direct the skiff operator to drop her where she had been put down last time. She hit the ground running with unerring accuracy towards where she knew Catra’s home was located. After an hour she finally broke into the clearing that housed the Crystal Castle and the little cave, panting and sluiced with sweat. She dropped her pack to the ground and bowed over bracing her hands on her knees. The glade seemed eerily quiet and a feeling of foreboding crept up her spine.

Leaving her discarded pack at the treelike she made her way to the cave, calling out the cub’s name to no avail. Crouching she wriggled her way through the small opening of the cave and found herself standing inside and cold and abandoned place. There was dust thick everywhere and no sign of life. She bent down to pick up the blanket she had given the other girl and moved outside. She shook the dust from the material and then brought it up to her face, burying her face in it and letting out a muffled scream of frustration. Lowering it she found herself shouting for LIght Hope, she shouted until her throat was raw but still there was only silence. 

Dejectedly she walked back into the woods after sagging her bag and balling up the blanket and forcing it inside. She walked aimlessly in the vague direction of her destination, eyes glancing among the trees looking for claw marks only to see birds and squirrels.

So distracted by her fear and sadness was she that she almost barrelled over the small red robed figure who was suddenly in her path, She caught herself in time, skidding to a stop and falling onto her butt on the ground and letting out a pained whoomph.

“Mara dear, you really must be more careful. If an old woman like me can get the jump on you then how will we ever save everyone?” There was seriousness in her voice belied by the chuckle that Adora had noticed was ever present when Catra had taken her to meet the old hermit so long ago.

“Madam Razz, it’s me, Adora not Mara, remember?” Seeing Razz gave her hope that she could get some answers about Catra. Maybe she was living with the old woman in her cottage?

Eyes made giant behind the thick lenses of her glasses looked at her and for a moment they were laser sharp and boring a hole through the girl. Adora had still not risen from the floor and ow she felt frozen there as the old woman walked closer and cupped the side of her face with her hand. She seemed to be examining her, looking for something that she obviously found, as she backed away and brought both hand to rest on her stick.

“Adora, yes, you are the next one. It’s still not time. The Wilding knows the time, you must listen to her when she tells you. Try not to let her fall over the cliff into the shadows. She is with them now. The Wildling is starting to be become the angry one.” It was clear she was talking about Catra, but Adora had no idea what she meant.

“Razz, can’t you be clear? I don’t understand!” Now she was standing and there was pleading in her voice.

“You will Adora dear, you will.” Razz turned her back on the girl and started away.

“Don’t leave! Help me!” 

“Oh Mara, don’t be silly, you’re here to help me get berries for pie.” And then she was gone, melting into the trees as though she had never been there at all. Leaving Adora alone with nothing but jumbled words, a blanket and a very bad feeling.   
__________________

Scorpia walked down the empty, eerily quiet corridor, to the little cat’s room. Ever since she and Octavia had brought the youth in, she had been placed in charge of monitoring her progress when she was outside of Shadow Weavers room. She brought the kids food, which was usually left to mould in the corner, until the big scorpion couldn’t stand the smell anymore and would remove them.

After the first day Shadow Weaver had been adamant that the child never left the cell unless it was to attend her daily interrogations, which meant that she was now blood spattered and filthy, her fur matter and her eyes were dull. Scorpia was not a woman for whom cruelty came easily, if at all, and her heart broke as she entered the cell to see that today the girl was curled in a ball with her tail twisted unnaturally and limp in a way it never was. There was a wet patch beneath her and the Force Captain realised that the child had wet herself as she could not make it to the toilet in the corner of the room. The room stank of rotten food, vomit and urine, a pungent stench that made her gag and quickly step back out.

Nobody could deserve what this forest creature was being put through, and for what she had never been told. She followed orders as she always had but a small fire of rebellion had started to blossom in her chest when she was near her charge. She had snuck her to the showers as many times as she could get away with over the months, which wasn’t many but she had tried. She sometimes brought her old, tattered uniforms from the rag pile that were cleaner than her own. There had even been several times where she had snuck a medic down to the cell under promise of secrecy for extra rations (her own, she would rather go hungry than steal) to patch up the worst of the wounds.

Nothing had ever been as troubling as today. There was always a spark about the girl, a quivering kind of anticipation that she could pounce and unleash those dangerous looking claws at any moment. Something that screamed of the woods and how this girl had lived until she and Octavia had plucked her away. Scorpia hated to feel bad, or examine what might not be quite right about her home, she was a good soldier but also a bleeding heart and she knew that some people though that made her liability. She wanted to prove that it wasn’t, that it would get loyalty from her people. 

Setting the wrapped ration bar outside on the ground, she took down the forcefield and walked in to where the kid wasn’t even chained up anymore, Shadow Weaver apparently thinking that all the fight had finally gone. Approaching like she would have a wounded animal that she was trying to help, Scorpia got into a crouch and mad rushing noises, further troubled by how the small body didn’t move at her intrusion. Even those usually so expressive ears were mobile. If she couldn’t see the ribs being sucked in with shallow breaths she would believe that she was looking at a corpse.

“Hey Kitty, I brought you some food, but I guess you’re not that hungry right now, huh?” Her voice was soft, something unusual for her but she was boisterous, not thoughtless. “Gosh, you look real dirty. How about I take you to the showers and go and get some clean clothes?” There was, as always, no response. “I’m gonna lift you up, I hope that’s ok. One, two, three.” She slipped her big claws under the fragile body and scooped her up, noting that she was far lighter than when she had been captured in the woods. 

Without thought, Scorpia walked away from the cell, knowing that she was going to need to change her own uniform after this, and headed towards one of the showers that she knew would be abandoned at this time of day. She moved passed a storage room and grabbed a sealed uniform for herself, and one of the ones from the recycle bin for the girl, not daring to give her new. The girl never stirred even when she was momentarily set down.

They made it to the shower and Scorpia punched in her Force Captain authorisation which would give her the luxury. Of a full 20 minute shower, a luxury for officers that she was happy to fruit today in favour of offering it to the prisoner. Usually, on the few occasions she’d brought her here, she moved to block the door and allowed the kid to undress herself and look after her own needs. That seemed like an impossibility today so with soft words and as much care as her claws could take she cut the soiled cloth from the furred body, observing the bald patches under the clothing where it looked like the fur had been burned away, and the dozens of scars, healed and fresh that covered her.

The shower was switched on, and still in her own dirty uniform, she moved under the spray and cleaned up the girl, trying not to look as she dealt with her more private areas but knowing it was necessary. It was hard to tell how old the creature was, she had seemed maybe a teen when she had been captured, but now she was so emaciated she looked no more than twelve or so.

Scorpia efficiently dried them both and redressed herself and the girl, who still had not stirred. By the time that Scorpia returned to the prison cell, the smell seemed even stronger now they were clean. Making a decision, she placed the girl in the neighbouring cell and used the com pad on her old cell to call janitorial to clean. She was sure nobody would care the girl had moved one door down. What harm could it do?   
_________________

Shadow Weaver looked at her handiwork. If she was to be stymied in getting the information form the lockbox of the girls mind, she would wipe everything else clean and make her anew as a member of the Horde. She was not a woman to waste resources and this filthy little animal was, if nothing else, a walking weapon of teeth and claws. Her body was stronger and more resilient than it appeared and she would die working for them in the glorious name of conquest.

She had pushed her magic back through the girl’s temples and into her mind, scorching everything in the darkness around the box, leaving her mind as a charred and smoking, red tinged ruin. The child had long since stopped reacting, so broken that she was almost catatonic. That would have to change if she was to be placed in the cadet quarters.

Standing in front of the girl who was standing in the centre of the room, dressed in a fresh set of cadet whites. Her grey leggings were only just small enough to fit, while the white and red shirt hung on her boney frame, her matted arm fur looking dark by contrast. Shadow Weaver had toyed with hacking off the unruly nest of hair but decided that it made her look more like she had just been ‘saved’ from the wild. No need for any of the other youths to ask too many questions.

“Can you understand me?” Her serpentine voice pierced into the girl, making her ears droop and her eyes turn to her. A brittle nod was her answer. “Good. This is who you are, pay attention.” The words were almost redundant, the message was being piped straight into her mind via the red tinged magic, but over the years the witch had found that words reinforced the power of the magic.

She wove a story of a feral girl, abandoned by her family in the woods who had grown up alone since she was small. She could speak but had no social graces and had not meant to frighten the cadets who had seen her. She had been delighted when she had been rescued from the woods and after being decontaminated for lice and fleas she was now happy to join the Horde as a cadet where she would get fed as she had been starving in the wild. Finer details were unimportant, there was little time for frivolity in the life of the cadets. They were constantly kept busy; idle hands and all that. 

The beast parroted the information back to her with a blank face and she was pleased at her success. Now the question was where to put her, she would need to be kept away from Scorpia, the bumbling fool had clearly taken a shine to this thing and made it her pet. That was easily done as the young Force Captain could be deployed anywhere. Octavia on the other hand, shared her own callous desire for power and cared not a jot for it. Really there was only one answer.

Adora had always been her favourite cadet, and the fact that she buzzed with underlying power was simply a perk. Since the moment Hordak had given her the baby all those years ago, she had been shaping her into the perfect soldier; loyal, clever and obedient. She was so eager to receive praise it made controlling the young woman almost too easy at times. If she place this thing in her bunk-room and into her square, she would certainly report back any anomalies.

She bade the cat to follow her down the corridors and eventually into the cadet areas where she was directed to the bunk above Adora’s own, in case anything were to slip from the creature in her sleep, no better way for the human girl to hear them and report back.

The girl climbed up dumbly and curled into a ball on the thin mattress. Shadow Weaver severed her connection, no need to puppet her strings now. She would be who she had crafted her to be. The second in command was heading for the door when she heard the clamour of feet and chattering voices as the cadet’s who shared this room rounded the doorframe, almost bumping into her but having the reflexes instead to instantly stand to attention. She ran her eyes over Adora’s squad; the girl, the scrawny one and the big lizard. They were excelling under her protege’s leadership and she was proud.

“Ah, Adora, I am glad to see you all back. I trust that your simulation training was successful today and I look forward to evening your scores. Adora flushed while the other three try not to fidget. “I have brought a recent recruit who was found in the woods. We have rehabilitated her, though she is still somewhat feral. I leave her under your command, it will be your job to keep her on a tight leash. You will report any issue to me immediately.” Not waiting for a response, she swept passed them, throwing over her shoulder, “It doesn’t seem to have a name so you may give it one.” And she was gone.

While Shadow Weaver had been speaking Adora had felt her knees turn to jelly, knowing beyond a doubt who she was going to find on that bunk. Even if she had not spotted the familiar tail she would have known. How long had she had the cub? Was that where she had been all this time?

She did her best not to run over to the bunk, instead staying with the larger group who all eyes the still figure with suspicious.

“You think it’s the thing from the woods?” Whispered Kyle in a voice too loud not to be heard by the large ears of the newcomer.

“Probably, I’ll bet she’s been told to spy on us.” Lonnie’s always gloomy outlook came out in full force as Rogelio grunted in agreement.

“I tell you what, I give you permission to have extra rec time, I’ll debrief this new recruit and bring her up to speed.” She just wanted them to go!

“All right! You don’t have to tell us twice Adora.” Lonnie grabbed a hand of each the boys and pulled them out of the room without a backwards glance.

Still unable to relax, Adora took a shuddering breath and made her way over to the bunks, hoisting herself up with the girl clearly hiding herself there. She didn’t speak, just ran her eyes over the bones sticking through her clothes and the patches of missing fur. The person in front of her was not the girl she had curled up to sleep with so many months ago. She had obviously been with Shadow Weaver all this time. Lost in the shadows as Razz had said.

“Hey Catra?” Her voice was so soft that no human would hear, but the big ears flapped towards her. There was no verbal response, but the smaller girl raised her face so that her eyes could peer up from her folded arms. Adora had feared they would be empty, she had heard the rumours about what Shadow Weaver was capable of but those eyes still looked like her friend. 

She reached out a tentatively hand, watching for any sign that it was unwanted, and laid it on the other girls head by her ear. Catra didn’t flinch from her touch, in fact she leant into the soft touch, her whole body seeming to relax like a traveller coming home from a long journey. Adora couldn’t help but notice how grimy and matted the mane was, so unlike it’s usual wild freedom. It would take the both of them to get it clean. With infinite gentleness she scratched at the base of the ear and heard a long sigh escape the other girl.

“Hey, Adora.” The words were barely intelligible, whispered through a bruised jaw and coming from a mind frayed and terrorised. “She couldn’t take me away but I have to pretend to be gone.”

The words sounded nonsensical and jumbled, but the triumphant set of the cubs jaw told Adora that it was important and she locked the words away to ask more later. Right now it was important to feed the girl back up and untangle that hair. But first, she just needed to hold the other girl and know she was real. Glancing at the door she was assured that they were alone before she laid down behind the still balled up body and held her close. Whatever was happening Adora would protect her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reunited and it feels so good...


	15. Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The first morning back together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A quick little update to follow yesterday's.

The next morning Adora uncurled herself from Catra, pleased to note that though the others had arrived back last night nobody had disturbed them. It was not unusual for her to wake long before the others and she thanked Hordak that she would get some time with Catra before the others roused and got rowdy. She would have to pull the trio aside and demand that they not tell Shadow Weaver, it would get both she and Catra in trouble for fraternising and the cat girl didn’t look like she could take much more. She stood up quietly and stretched out limbs that had been bunched up for too long. She tried but failed to hold in a squeak as something popped in her elbow. That small sound was enough to send Catra darting to the far end of the bed, body trembling and claws extended, hissing lowly at the threat.

“Hey, it’s just me.” Adora spoke so softly that without her cat ears the younger girl wouldn’t have heard. Her eyes looked huge under the morning lighting in the bunk room, frantic until they settled on her and she watched the girl go from rigid and hissing to limp in a heartbeat.

Taking the chance, Adora moved back to the bed and crawled slowly towards her friend with a hand outstretched. Catra watched her with suspicious eyes, whatever part of her that had allowed her to relax with Adora last night had retreated and in its place was fear. Adora withdrew her hand but made soft, shushing noises to try to coax the air to relax.

“I don’t know what she’s done to you but you’ll be ok now. I’m here and I’ll look after you. I’ll make sure that you’re good and Shadow Weaver,” the other girl shrank even further into herself at the mention of the name and hissed again. “She won’t hurt you as long as you behave. She never hurts me because I follow the rules.” She could see that her words were just confusing the other girl, so sat back on her haunches and thought about her next move.

In the harsh fluorescent light of day in the cadets room, Catra’s state was even more obvious, her uniform was rags and her hair and fur were dirty and matted. There was a strong door coming from her that was like ozone and it tickled her nose so much be driving the feline mad. It was early enough that none of the other cadets would rouse themselves for at least thirty minutes which was plenty of time to carry out the plan that had just entered her mind. 

“Hey, hey,” dazed those dual coloured eyes turned to her with little recognition. “How would you like to get clean, huh? Come with me.” She got off of the bed and walked over to the doorway, turning to look expectantly at her friend. Her heart soared when the small girl crawled off the bed and inched her way to join her.

Whatever notions she had last night about being together with Catra in the Fright Zone, lay dead now at the sight of her. She walked down the corridor to the showers and pulled two towels from the unit, tearing them out of the plastic they were rapped in. Even the slight sound of the plastic tearing made the furred girl flinch. Adora was careful as she approached her again, trying to make eye contact which was resisted. Leaving Catra where she was for now, she went to requisition a clean uniform, seeing that the only small one left was the red kind, but it would have to do. She signed the sheet and logged her code before taking it. It would mean that she would have to wear her dirty uniform a second time but it was worth it. Holding the clothes, she felt uncomfortable about putting Catra into them. Seeing her dressed in the uniforms, even the rags that she now wore, seemed obscene somehow when she knew she should be naked and free. 

Pulling herself together she made her way back into the changing room and was relieved to see that the cat girl had undressed and thrown the rags in the disposal, as though she knew what do here, which was a relief. When she walked closer though, her breath caught at the sight of the girl in front of her and she had to bite down on a sob that was desperate to escape.

Catra’s body was all bones, all the muscle tone acquired through a lifetime of running though the forest gone in a few months. Her glossy fur was dull, balding in places or singed and there were obvious scars poking through littering her body. The chubby faced, well muscled woodland creature had been killed in this place, even if her body was still standing before her. The smaller girl felt the weight of the stare and reached across her body to grip her other elbow, trying to sooth herself from judgement, her head bowed.

“Have you used the showers before?” It seemed a safe enough question. Catra nodded her head, ears still pressed close to her head. “Ok, that’s good. That’s great. I’ll wait here to make sure nobody comes in.” Catra hesitated. “Go on, you’ll be fine, I promise.”

Finally those words seemed to make an impact and she shuffled into the showers, Adora was relieved to hear the water start running. Alone for the moment she let herself sag against the doorframe, keeping her promise to keep watch even as tears spilled down her cheeks. She was fifteen and almost a Force Captain, she shouldn’t cry but how could she not? She’d known something was wrong but had let herself hope and where had that led? Her friend was broken and it was all her mentors fault. How was she supposed to reconcile that? Shadow Weaver had always been good to her. Whatever she wanted she must have got, and now Adora would make Catra into the perfect cadet so that there would be no reason for the Second in Command to look her way again.

By the time the shower shut off, she had wiped her face on her sleeve and got her breathing under control. She needed to know how bad a state the other girl was in, physically she was obviously half starved and injured, but what might be going on in her mind was even more worrying. Last night she had known her, had accepted her embrace and they had slept together but this morning she seemed dazed and afraid.

Hearing wet footfalls slap against the tile of the floor, she unfolded the towels and made her way to the girl who now looked more like a drowned rat and even smaller with her fur slicked to her body. Gently and with as much care as she could, Adora wrapped one towel around the shivering body and another around her head. There was no resistance to her touch, jut resignation in those slumped shoulders, but the blond would take what she could get as she worked the towel over the small body and hair until as much moisture possible was gone. She handed Catra the uniform and watched as she pulled it on, glad that she cut a hole for her tail in the pants.

“Catra, can you come and sit with me on that bench over there?” She nodded, docile, and made her way over as Adora threw the towels in the laundry and then joined her, sitting by her side.

“Do you know me?” It hurt to ask but she had to be sure.

“Yes, Adora.” The words were rough and quiet.

“Ok, that’s great. Do you know who we are together?” Adora hated that she could be so clumsy with words.

“Friends.” There was a certainty there and the eyes met hers at last.

“Do you know where?” This was important, she could feel it. Catra shook her head, starting to seem agitated by the question. “Do you know the woods? The Crystal Castle?”

The younger girl began to become agitated, eyes wild and body shaking at these questions. She shook her head more and more agitatedly until Adora stopped talking and wrapped her arms around the shaking girl. She started to shush in her ears again and felt the other girl relax into her.

“That’s all ok, Catra. You know me and you know I’m you’re friend and those are the most important things. I’ll help you catch up with everybody and you can be part of my team.” The words were spilling out as much to sooth herself as her friend. 

Time passed and soon they heard the sounds of the other cadet barracks waking up. Hurriedly Adora told Catra to follow her lead, stick close and everything would be fine. Dutifully, the cat girl did as she was instructed and was led back to her new home. The only home she could remember.

Inside the room Lonnie was fixing her braids while Rogelio ribbed Kyle for his bedhead. It was familiar and Adora took comfort in the fact that they hadn’t changed. She just needed to make sure that they accepted the newcomer.

“Hi guys,” her voice was bright and cheery even while Catra hid half behind her as they passed through the entrance. The others all acknowledged her with a flat, tired ‘hi’ or a grunt. 

“Who’s the newbie?” Lonnie’s voice had an edge that Adora didn’t like, but she knew it was just because she wanted to protect their tiny Horde family.

“This is Catra, she’s new. We’re going to make sure that she gets up to speed so that she doesn’t bring our scores down. We need to be a team.” She noticed that Kyle’s eyes were studying Catra, though he didn’t seem to recognise the girl who had saved him. In her dishevelled state she wasn’t surprised. Good, the less people that connection the better.

The team had made their way to breakfast, she had managed to help Catra to the mess and sat her down while retrieving a ration bar for both of them. The emaciated girl had looked at the grey bar with disgust but hunger had outweighed everything else and she had stuffed it into her mouth and gagged it down in three bites. Adora had noticed all of the other cadets at her table watching the new arrival with hawklike intensity, seeing what she was made of. Adora would have to flex some muscle until Catra got back into good physical condition, some of the cadets were always looking for somebody weaker to take out their frustrations. Kyle was lucky that he had Rogelio, and nobody wanted to tussle with him.

Her thoughts were brought back to the girl beside her as she heard a gagging noise and then Catra was vomiting the contents of her stomach over the table, decimating the breakfasts, and appetites of everybody around her. The food must have been too much too soon and her stomach had rebelled. Adora cursed herself for not thinking of that, but she had never gone hungry so she hadn’t thought.

Angry voices rose around them and one large boy from the year above moved towards them faster than Adora could react and pulled harshly at Catra’s tail, causing her to let out a scream so heart stopping that the noise in the room stopped at once. Adora could see Catra’s breath coming out in small, ragged pants before suddenly her eyes rolled back and she fell back from the bench she sat on, hitting the ground hard with a clang as her skull made contact with the ground.

“Enough!” It was Force Captain Octavia, marching over to the scene from where she had just entered the mess. She stood over the prone girl and curled her lip in disgust, kicking her non-to-gently and getting no reaction. “You, clean this up.” This was directed at the boy who had left his seat to pull the cat’s tail. “The rest of you,” she waved at those cadets whose food had been vomited on and raised her voice. “Get yourselves a new ration bar and eat fast.”

Octavia reached down and grasped Catra by her already stained uniform and dragged her to her feet, where she simply hung limply in the bigger woman’s grasp. Her swear was now positively evil as she glared at the broken thing in her hold.

“Force Captain, I can take her back to the bunks and get her cleaned up for training. I wouldn’t’t want my team to be docked points.” She put on her best smile and most obedient voice. 

“Fine, just make sure it doesn’t do this again!” Catra was thrust into Adora’s arms and she wasted no time in wrapping her arm around Catra and dragging her back to their bunk. She would make this better.


	16. Together/Apart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have struggled with this chapter - more transitional than anything else but next time we will going Adora in the woods.

Adora bolted upright in bed, hand reaching out next to her and coming away empty. She looked around frantically until she caught a glimpse of the form curled down by her feet. Her heartbeat slowed and she leaned forward to softly run a finger along the edge of a velvety ear, making it twitch in annoyance. The blond teen smiled softly, easily able to make out the shape of her best friend curled at her feet. Now she was more awake the warmth thrown off by the furred girl gathered her feet and was something she was grateful for on the coldest nights in the Fright Zone.

She could almost forget that Catra had not always been with her here. The more times passed, the easier it was to believe that their adventures in the Whispering Woods had been nothing but dreams or flights of fancy. When Shadow Weaver asked her if the feline had done or said anything of interest, her answer was always a grim denial. It wasn’t lying, Catra had done nothing to show that she had any inkling of the past other than her attachment to Adora herself. The commander never asked her if she had met Catra before, so she didn’t need to tell her. Omission wasn’t a lie, even if it played on her conscious. That and the constant worry for the younger girl sometimes made her heart feel too big for her chest and her breath come out in jagged waves. When that happened, almost like instinct, Catra would pull her away somewhere small and quiet and press her body against hers while she purred long and loud until the feeling passed. 

In the first few weeks that Catra had been delivered to her, Adora had tried to probe what she remembered. Initially she had though that perhaps the cub needed time to heal from her clearly abused state. As time went on the gaping void in her mind became more and more obvious. She looked blankly into blue eyes when she bought up the Crystal Castle, Light Hope or Razz. The blond found herself laughing it off. She was fourteen and not equipped to deal with this at all. It was enough that Catra was close by and mostly safe. SHe had tried to get into teh Crystal Castle on missions in the intervening year and found it empty and quiet, as for Razz she was as elusive as a spirit. 

Adora couldn’t kid herself that Catra was safe. Shadow Weaver all too often pulled the cub away and would don’t return her for days. As weeks passed into months and then a year had gone by, the frequency of these disappearances never wavered, though the reason for them seemed to evolve. When no information came from the kitten, the interrogations - or whatever happened in the Black Garnet chamber, became about frustration and control. Catra tried very hard to be ‘good’ at first, while Shadow Weaver found fault with everything she did. If Catra was good at something, it wasn’t enough no matter how hard she tried. They were now at a point where Catra was growing belligerent and harsh in the face of the cruelty and no amount of care from Adora seemed to be able to stem the tide.

The bright spot was that soon Adora would become a Force Captain and she would be able to bring Catra along with her to a square that wouldn’t be under the constant scrutiny of the masked woman. She would be able to take care of the girl that she had cared about for most of her young life.

Luminous eyes shone at her from the dark at the end of the bed, Catra scrutinising her in the dark with her perfect night vision. Her low voice barely carrying up to the head of the bed.

“You ok ‘Dora?” There was still exhaustion in her voice and Adora felt a little twinge of guilt that she had disturbed her sleep. 

“Yeah, just had a strange dream. Sorry I woke you.” Her voice was just as low, and they both sat silently looking at each other in the dark. Adora hoped that Catra couldn’t see her blush. The older she got the more confusing her feelings for her friend became, especially when they were soft with each other.

“Idiot, you don’t have to be sorry for waking me up. You’re my best friend. Do you want me to come up there?” They rarely slept next to each other, that was something from the before times and it seemed wrong to the blond to do it when the feline didn’t know what it meant to her. But tonight it didn’t seem wrong. Adora reached out a hand in entreaty and Catra rubbed her head into it like a housecat as she prowled up the bed and laid behind the taller girl, spooning her through the blanket. “Relax. You guys are heading out to the woods tomorrow, you need all the rest you could get.

Adora put her head back onto her thin pillow and allowed her body to melt into the warm embrace, trying not to think about the fact that, for the fourth time, she and the cadet unit would be heading back to the Whispering Woods minus Catra. Adora found no answers or peace there, not anymore, and constantly worried about the girl she left behind.

As though that very girl could read her thoughts, Catra wrapped her hands around her middle and pulled her even closer until she could purr soothingly into her ear. Adora covered the interlaced, clawed hands that sat on her abdomen with her own and let herself be pulled into sleep. 

_____________________

Catra moved through the training exercise with ease. She leapt from pillar to post, dodging the wild swings of her opponent and hearing their growled curses as they stumbled from the momentum of their aborted attack. If she were sparring with Adora, she would have thrown her head back and laughed at the human girl, throwing a friendly jibe at her. Getting one back in return. Not today, though. 

Adora had been bundled off by Shadow Weaver for one of their ‘meetings’, before heading out on another training exercise in the woods. There had been no time to spend together that morning. Catra was almost certain that they were discussing her in those sessions, as well as Adora’s glorious future as the hero of the Horde. Adora had let slip, soon after she had woken up confused and knowing nothing more than who Adora was and that she needed to stay close to her, that Shadow Weaver wanted to know anything unusual that Catra did. Adora had promised her that she would never share her secrets with the terrifying woman. Not the Catra had any secrets to share, her memory was still a black void filled with the light of only Adora.

Catra had learned a few things since she first woke up and snuggled into Adora’s arms;  
Shadow Weaver brought only pain for the slightest infraction  
Adora was the only person she could rely on  
Lonnie was mean but fair  
Kyle was weak  
The food was terrible  
No biting  
You can’t eat the lizard  
She didn’t get to leave the Fright Zone

The penultimate thing on the list was laughable, really, Rogelio was easily three times her size and as immovable as a boulder. He spoke in hisses and grunts that she was still attempting to get to grips with, though even the kids who had grown up with him seemed lost. In the two years that she had been a cadet in the Horde, she had come to trust him. If she couldn’t fight with Adora at her back, then she would take Rogelio. The shared a synergy on the battlefield that she could only assumed came from their animal heritages.

Her aptitude for battle had come as a surprise to all of the instructors. After her incident in the mess hall she had been poked and prodded, assessed for eligibility to be in Adora’s unit and almost been found wanting; her muscle tone had been non existent and she had been emaciated to near skeletal. If not for Shadow Weavers insistence she was pretty sure that she would have found herself in the mines, one thing that she could be grateful to her great tormentor for at least. Imagine the surprise of those same instructors when she had proved to be fast, agile and able to slice through metal with ease even in her weakened state. Once she had been properly fed and given a strength regimen she was a match for even Adora.

It didn’t take her long to realise that being a match for Adora was equally as dangerous as being weak though. The first, and only, time that she had beat the blond in combat had been with staffs and she had easily moved with speeds that the more muscular girl could not withstand and disarmed her. She had stood over her friend, staff end held to her neck and a smirk on her face as Adora had looked up at her with shining, proud eye. Then she had felt herself torn away, and thrown across the room. Cat-like reflexes had saved her from careening into a wall but not from being dragged from the room and shown exactly what happened if she damaged Adora or her reputation. She hadn’t made that mistake again, holding back whenever they were paired together. Unleashing her power on everyone else, and making no friends doing it.

Sometimes, she and Adora would climb to the top of one of the rickety towers and just be with each other. It felt familiar and foreign all at once, the place was wrong but the feeling was comforting. Catra would lounge on the narrow railing, body perfectly balanced while she let her legs dangled, while Adora would sit on the rusty floor with her legs crossed and leaning back on her hands. They would both look out into the smoggy haze, able to make out just a hint of the Whispering Woods sitting in the distance. Catra would let her tail cost over Adora’s neck and upper arms, pretending not to notice when the other girl’s breath would hitch. 

At night, Catra would rack her brain for anything that would tell her where she came from, or who she had been. Why she could remember Adora as vividly as she could remember how to walk or talk, yet everything around those memories was a black void. Sometimes, if she focused hard enough, the darkness would have a blue glow around the edges but if she pushed too hard her head would begin to ache until she lost consciousness. She couldn’t afford for that to happen, vulnerability here was dangerous.

Slinking away from training, bypassing the locker room completely for fear of reprisal (especially with all of her unit far, far away) Catra found herself back at her special spot. It felt more lonely, colder somehow with the other girl gone, but other than her bed, it was the place she felt closest to Adora. I wasn’t the first time that they had all gone to the woods without her, in fact it was the fourth. She wasn’t sure why Shadow weaver had made the edict that’s he was to always stay behind. She knew that she had been found in the woods and rescued by two Force Captains, maybe the older woman was afraid that she would run away.

Where would she go?

Everything she knew and loved was here in this acrid, mechanical place. She could no more walk away from Adora than she could shed her skin and become lizard-kin. She perched on the railing, Feet on the bar while she crouched with her hands dangling between her knees. Her body was coiled and perfectly balance. It was probably foolhardy to do this while she was alone, no matter how agile she may be a fall of that magnitude would surely kill her, but that didn’t stop her. She squinted her eyes and thought, just maybe, she could make out two large skiffs heading away across the no-mans land between the Fright Zone and the Whispering woods.


	17. Never

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Always listen to Razz.

Once, the Whispering Woods had been a place she counted down the days until she visited. Catra had been there and they had played and laughed and just been children together, out of sight of anyone else. She still had Catra, or a version of her, but that was in the Fright Zone. Now when she went on training exercises in the woods, it was a feverish search for any clues about what had happened to her friend and how to reverse it. With each mission, the fear of what might befall her friend in her absence grew. 

At first, the feline had been scared and skittish, easily capitulating to the wants and desires of their superiors and Shadow Weaver. As the months had passed, she had grown more and more capable. Stronger and faster than any of the other cadets, even Adora herself. It hadn’t surprised the blond girl, she knew exactly how amazing her young friend was, having watched her fly through the trees and pluck birds out of the air more than once. As her physical abilities had been restored, so had her capriciousness that grated on their superiors and peers alike. Catra did not follow orders well, it seemed, and that led to punishments, some that Adora saw and others that were far more fighting as Shadow Weaver would pull the younger girl away.

After her aborted attempt to contact Light Hope when she was at the cave, Adora had tried to find any sign of the strange old woman that Catra had taken her to visit. Razz had been odd and spoken in riddles, but had clearly cared for Catra. Surely she would have missed the other girl by now and would help Adora find out what was happening to her?

So far, none of her attempts to find her had been successful. During her previous few trips to hunt for the ancient lady she had come away empty handed. Either stymied by the needs of her mission, or the fact that she couldn’t get far enough into the Woods on her night time excursions to have any hope of finding the strange little cottage. Added to that was the fact that Lonnie was far too observant and had started to become far to curious about what she was up to at night. The last thing she needed was to be followed into the heart of the woods and be asked questions that she could not, would not, answer. That had led to her staying in her tent and making no progress for most of the last trip out.

This time would be different, though. They were to be split into two teams, taking part in a war game. Fighting bots in a simulated environment was one thing, tackling a real live foe in the wilds was another. By now they all had experience of navigating the edges of the wilderness and knew how to survive there well enough. This exercise was to see how well they could apply all the skills they had accrued over the last seven years. It was a precursor to the selection for Force Captains that would soon be upon them. This elaborate game of capture the flag would see the losing team with a lot to answer for.

Adora, clever and sharp in a different way to her feral best friend, had a plan. Even before the skiffs had set them down she had separated the group into two teams, one led by Lonnie and the other by one of the loud mouthed burly boys who always got on her last nerve on these expeditions. It raised eyebrows that she was not taking a leading role. On the ground she explained that she was going to act as a marshal, monitoring the game play to ensure that nobody was hurt or cheating. Rogelio and three others were also given these roles, two placed in each team while she claimed she would float. It was genius and meant that for almost four days she could lose herself in the woods. It was underhanded, and went against her nature, but where Catra was concerned she found that she had little concern for anything else.

“You sure about this, Adora?” Lonnie sidled up to her as the others gathered their gear. This time round there were small wagons of weapons and supplies for them to set up there camps to defend, along with their packs and tents. 

“Why wouldn’t I be? I can’t always take the lead, Lonnie. That’s not what a good commander does. I have to delegate.” She was pleased with her response, as she rested her hands on her hips and surveyed the group so that she didn’t have to make eye contact with the girl who had known her almost her whole life.

“About time, you big glory hog. Give some of the rest of a chance to shine!” Her words were harsh, but she bumped Adora with her shoulder affectionately.

“Well, you best go and get your people together then, captain.” She threw the darker girl and smile and watched her hustle over to her team and start barking orders at them. 

“Teams,” she raised her voice and all heads turned to her. “You will have the next twelve hours to strike out, find a basecamp and fortify it. I will contact you in twelve hours, when you will exchange coordinates and then it becomes who can deploy, defend and pursue the most effectively.” She looked at the faces of each team member in turn. “Keep your comms open. If there is ant trouble call for help, nobody wins if somebody is wounded. May the best team win.” The words had barely left her mouth when the teams were scrambling to be the firs to disappear into the woods.

Soon Adora was standing alone, the other marshals having gone with their selected groups. Waving off the two skiffs, she waited until they too were piloted out of sight. Throwing her pack over her shoulders, she headed down the line of trees until she could disappear into the familiar spot that opened up to the clearing that she would always think of as hers and Catra’s. Knowing that time was of the essence, she set a brisk pace through the clearing and into the trees. Knowing the rout back to Catra’s cave by heart, she made rapid progress getting there, only stopping when her body screamed for rest and a ratio bar. By the time night began to fall, she found herself at the base of a rock wall that was unfamiliar. Had she taken a wrong turn? 

Looking up, in the fading light she could see that there were plenty of hand and foot holds but as the shadows got longer she knew that it would have to wait till morning. She could go around this obstacle, but she couldn’t risk the woods turning her around. The woods were notorious for changing and disorientating the people who entered, it was why trying was so important and also why the Horde had never been able to break through it. It had never tried to stop her before, as though it understood that she would never hurt it or the lonely girl who lived there. Today though it seemed to have other ideas. 

Pitching her tent in the shadow of the cliff, she didn’t bother with a fire. Breaking open a grey ration bar and choking it down, she called into to both of the teams. All was well and the bases had been selected and set. Coordinates were exchanged and both teams knew not to start manoeuvres until daybreak. It wasn’t a war strategy, but they were only youths and if they began to fight tomorrow they would forget about her in the excitement of the challenge.

She retreated into her tent and bundled herself up into the sleeping bag she had brought, a small blanket tucked tight to her body. It wasn’t hers but contained the comforting scent of the girl for whom she was seeking answers. Soon she was sleeping, her brain working furiously through a jumble of confusing images of the tall blue woman, an angry faced Catra and a strange, lowing sword swaddled in vines that seemed to call to her. 

In her dreams she reached out for the sword, even as she heard Catra screaming her name, and as her hand tightened around the hilt a blast of energy threw her though the air! Then she was sitting up, clutching at her chest and breathing heavily as sweat tricked down her temple. The dream had been disorientating and waking up alone felt wrong. Seeing the weak light of morning already illuminating the tent, she rose and broke camp, rather than trying to get any more sleep. Downing another ration bar and stretching, she bundled everything back into her pack and secured it firmly to her back.

Looking up, and up, she plotted a rout and as soon as the light was bright enough for safety. She thanked providence that she had been climbing around the Fright Zone with the cat girl so much that she was no longer intimidated by an obstacle like this. Reaching up she took a firm hold and used her superior muscle tone to start pulling her body up. 

Halfway to the top her fingers felt raw and her thought were burning. Sweat trickled between her skin and her back and she could feel the chaffing sensation that told her she was going to have blisters in some odd places. She really wished she had had the foresight to bring gloves as she felt a small trail of blood trail down her palm from the scraped skin of a finger. Sweat was starting to roll down her face as the morning heated up, and she tried vainly to wipe it on her forearm. Taking a breath she kept moving up, already to far from the ground to head back. She just hoped that she would be able to find an easier path back.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, but was probably closer to forty minutes, she was grasping her hands over the top edge of the wall. With a big push from her legs she was throwing herself over the edge and laying sprawled on the grass at the top, throwing an arm over her face as she took big gulps of air. She desperately needed a drink but it was under her in her pack. Before she could move she felt an odd sensation against the sole of her boot.

Tap. Tap. Tap. 

Moving her arm from her face and craning her neck up, eyes widening in shock as she saw the red dress and wild white hair of the woman she had been looking for! She was so shocked that all she could do was stare, unmoving as the old woman continued to hit her boot with the end of her broom.

“Come on Mara dear, no time for laying around lazybones.” Not waiting for a response from the girl on the ground, Razz grasped her broom and turned, heading back towards the dense trees.

Scrambling to her feet, desperate to keep the illusive woman in her sights, Adora found herself running to catch up as the leaves started to swallow the small woman. She caught up just in time, sweating and panting from the climb and the shock of finding her objective.

“Mara, you should really have something to drink.” Razz turned her huge, magnified eyes on her and gestured to the pack on her back with the broom.

Dazedly Adora pulled her pack off of one shoulder and pulled out her water as she continued to stumble after the sure footed figure, deeper and deeper into the woods. The canopy closed over there heads and for the first time in years Adora felt a trickle of fear run up her spine in the enchanted woods. As though she could sense the girls unease, Razz slowed and reached out her hand to take one of Adora’s and give it a motherly squeeze before using it to pull her along behind her. 

_____________

Sitting in the cottage after a walk that was foreboding but far too short to get them there, Adora took a sip of the tea that had been pressed into her hands once she had been led through the door. Razz had dropped her hand and made her way to the steaming kettle, pouring the hot water into two waiting mugs. Now they sat opposite each other and Adora felt nervous and confused. She had known that there was something different about the little old lady from the first time that Catra had brought her to the cottage, but now it seemed like she was mystical in ways that a Horde soldier couldn’t fathom.

“Hello Adora,” Razz’s eyes were very clear, the use of the blond’s name startling.

“You know me?” Blue eyes were hungry for information.

“I have always known you, Adora, and Mara before you. You are special people.” Razz drank her tea with a hum.

“I’m not special, Razz. I’m just a soldier.” This was not what she had come here, yet she was being drawn into Razz’s confusing web.

“I’ve told you before, Mara dear, you have a destiny that you can chose. You are not trapped by fate.” 

“I don’t… I don’t understand; what fate? What IS destiny?” They were words she had distantly heard before, but she wasn’t really sure of their meaning, they were princess words, magic language that she didn’t need to know.

“Now, now Adora dear, where is my Wildling? She hasn’t come to see her Razz. Her pie will get cold.” Razz looked around Adora, towards the door, as if she expected the furred girl to walk in, in her shift.

“Razz, Catra isn’t in the woods anymore.” Adora’s spirits crashed as she realised that Razz didn’t know what had happened to the younger girl. “She’s been in the Fright Zone, with me, for almost a year.”

“Would you like to take her some pie?” Razz had risen and started to putter around her cottage again. 

Crestfallen, Adora quietly rose and gathered up her bag. She headed for the curtain that acted as a door and gently pulled it aside, head bowed and shoulders slumped. She wasn’t sure that the woman would even notice that she had left. She had one foot over try threshold and on the path back to the war games, when a small hand grasped her elbow with a steely grip that stopped her forward momentum. Turning, she found the white head closer to her and looking at her sorrowfully.

“It isn’t time yet, Adora dear. Wildling will know when it is time and bring you. You have to trust her.” Adora did, she trusted the amnesiac girl with everything she had. “But Adora,” now her voice had taken on a much more somber tone. “You need to protect the Wildling. If she becomes the angry cat, many will be lost and the cost will be great.”

“How do I protect her? I’m not even allowed to bring her to the woods with me.” Adora’s voice rose, frantic.

“Oh, my dear, you do not need to protect her from the world. You need to protect her from herself…and from you.” The eyes behind the glasses started to take on their usual hazy look.

“I would never hurt Catra!’ She felt indignant even as she knew that whatever clarity Razz had to share was gone.

“We never mean to hurt the ones we love, Mara dear. We just do.” Then she was walking past Adora back out into the woods, repeating as she disappeared, “We just do.” 

Adora was left standing in the clearing outside the now vacant cottage, watching the woods where the woman had been enveloped in the leaves. She would never hurt Catra. She had been doing her best to protect her since she was eight years old, hiding her existence from the other cadets and then taking care of her in the barracks. She would never hurt Catra. 

Never.


End file.
